The Final Cut by Denis Markell
Published by Delacorte Press on April 26, 2022
ISBN: 0593180666
Pages: 304
Genres: Mystery
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads

Alex returns to school after a summer of skateboard camp with a new nickname (Xan) that just won’t stick and to make 7th grade even worse, he doesn’t get to take the video game design class he has been dreaming of all summer. Instead he ends up in film class. Film is so big at their school, they have 2 film teachers and several successful alumni who are successful filmmakers. Alex must work with classmates to create a film for the annual film contest while overcoming computer hackers, protests over a building permit (Alex’s Dad is on the building commission), and some kind of animosity between the two film teachers. Students will enjoy this clever, humorous mystery set in an elite NY middle school.

Reviewed by Karen Sandlin Silverman, Mt. Ararat Middle School, Topsham