This is a book you want to save to read in the privacy of your own home, where you are free to bawl or laugh out loud as you wish. I made the mistake of reading the last 30 pages or so at my work desk - BAD IDEA. Do not do this. 
 Topher, Steve, and Brand set out on a mission to give their beloved teacher, Ms. Bixby, her dream "last day." Ms. Bixby is in a hospital receiving treatment for pancreatic cancer, and the boys' class never got to say goodbye. As they make the bold, dangerous, and in some cases illegal trek throughout the city on a school day to surprise Ms. Bixby, readers get to read first-person accounts from each of the boys. We learn about how Ms. Bixby has affected their lives and the valuable Bixbyisms she has bestowed upon them. 
 I thought using the multiple-narrator approach really worked in this one, as each boy had a distinct and powerful voice. There's the imaginative Topher with a knack for drawing who wishes things like superheroes and the Tooth Fairy were real. His best friend, Steve, is a brilliantly smart boy who lives strictly by the facts (unless his friends can convince him otherwise). Brand rounds out the group, a stalwart boy who stands up for what is right as he struggles to keep things together for himself and his disabled father at home. I loved the interaction between these three, who accepted each other, quirks and all. They were funny, witty, and perceptive, making for some hilarious and poignant moments mixed in with the sadness. 
 The boys get themselves into situations that I would pray to God no other sixth-grade boys would find themselves in (ie. cornering that horrible guy in the alley!), but it didn't really bother me. This was a story of three boys going way out of their way to show their appreciation for someone that truly touched their lives. That is the kind of story kids can only benefit from reading.