The book Restart by Gordon Korman is a lighthearted story about the resident bad boy being struck with amnesia after falling off the roof. Chase Ambrose has to navigate around his condition as he goes to school and serves community service time, and ends up making new friends and enemies along the way.

Unfortunately, his classmates think he’s faking his amnesia, and it takes a while for them to realize how genuine he is. He struggles to communicate with his peers, but all the while also finds new interests in clubs. He also develops a relationship with one of the residents of the nursing home he does his community service in. 

The elderly man is a discharged soldier from the Vietnam War. He is witty, snappy, and disliked by most of his fellow residents. But as he gets to know Chase, they bond over each other’s experiences, despite Chase not remembering his completely. 

Later Chase is framed at school and almost expelled for having hit one of his friends in the head with a fire extinguisher. At first, everyone else wouldn’t listen to him, but eventually, they figured out the true culprits and that he was not the same person he was before.

He also finds a shiny object wedged between the boards and realizes it is the missing medal of honor that the elderly man couldn’t find. He connects the dots and figures out that he and his friends had stolen it from him originally to make money off of it. He brings it back and accepts charges from the police, as it is a serious crime to steal a medal of honor.

Personally, I love this book for the light read and the enjoyable moments that Chase navigated throughout the book. The way the author portrayed his actions was impeccable. 

The plot engages the reader and shows them how Chase’s beginnings weren’t ideal throughout the book. In fact, he was infamous for the pranks he did. But it portrays how he becomes a better person for himself and everyone around him.