Beekman's Big Deal by Michael de Guzman

By the time Beekman O'Day is in the seventh grade, he has been to 9 different schools in New York City. His father doesn't have a regular job - he makes deals - and when a deal falls through, they have to move because he can't pay the rent, and Beekman has to change schools because he can't pay the tuition. His father promises that things are going to change when they move into a house on Nutting Court, and he enrolls at Chance Academy, which some kids call "Last Chance Academy." This is a funny book full of quirky characters, including, of course, the school bully, who chooses Beekman to pick on. Review by Stacy Church