He is known to be hot-headed and difficult to work with. Randolph Applewhite is the father of the Applewhite children.

After attending Lucille's workshop at the middle school, he pushes Jake to 'enroll' at The Creative Academy.Ĭordelia Applewhite is E.D.'s creative and independent older sister on whom Jake forms a crush. Henry Dugan is Jake's grandfather and the Applewhites' neighbor. She clashes with Jake at the beginning of the book and ends up working with him on several occasions. If Jake does not adjust to life with the Applewhites, he will be placed in a juvenile detention facility.Įdith Wharton 'E.D.' Applewhite is named after Edith Wharton, and thrives on a sense of organization and structure, while the rest of her family is spontaneous and craves freedom.

Jake Semple is unsure about his feelings because his parents are in prison, and he has been expelled from several schools. He becomes acquainted with E.D., the 12-year-old child of the Applewhite family, and together, they recognize their differences, build on each other's strengths, and find ways to succeed. Jake has challenges navigating academic, social, and emotional life among the offbeat Applewhites. Their educational framework, trademarked as The Creative Academy, is nothing short of unorthodox. Dugan arranges for Jake's placement in a home school run by an eccentric family of artists, the Applewhites. Following his arsonist incident, Jake's grandfather, Henry Dugan, is fed up with his teenage rebelliousness. Both of his parents are in jail due to growing marijuana in their basement, and Jake struggles to make sense of the world and discover his true self amid the turmoil of his family life. Thirteen-year-old Jake is kicked out of every public school in Rhode Island and burned down the last school that he attended. The book received a 2003 Newbery Honor and many other awards. Surviving the Applewhites is a 2002 children's novel by Stephanie S.

Surviving the applewhites book