The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall

The protagonist of this realistic fiction story is Arthur and one day he made a mistake. A big mistake. He picked up a brick and hauled off and hit someone with it, a man who wandered the neighborhood collecting garbage. Of course after he did it, everyone wanted to know why but Arthur doesn’t even know. On his court date, the man he hit, Mr. Hampton, ends up making a deal with the judge for Arthur to do community service. As the story unfolds, the reasons for Arthur’s anger are revealed. This is an interesting tale of how a boy connects with a strange man and how that helps him move past his anger and grow. Grades 5-8