49 pages • 1 hour read
The Boy at the Back of the Class
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 22-26Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section of the guide includes depictions of bullying, physical violence, and discussion of racism, discrimination, and xenophobia.
Chapter 22 Summary: “World Wide Whispers”
Mum walks Alexa to the bus the next morning, worried that reporters will follow her and ask her questions. Tom’s parents are at the bus stop with him, too. Before the bus arrives, Tom’s dad tells Tom and Alexa to say “no comment” to anyone who bothers them about their trip to Buckingham Palace.
The school is surrounded by news vans. Reporters lunge out at Alexa and her friends, flooding them with questions. Mr. Irons does nothing to stop them, but Mrs. Sanders appears and demands that they leave school property and stop harassing her students.
Inside, Mrs. Sanders calls Alexa, Tom, Josie, Michael, and Ahmet into her office. Alexa feels upset and overwhelmed that she got Ahmet into trouble. Mrs. Khan and Ms. Hemsi join the meeting.
Ms. Hemsi tells Ahmet in Kurdish what Alexa and Tom did. The teachers ask Alexa and her friends to explain what happened and why. Alexa shows them the plans they drew up and recounts everything that happened when she and Tom went to the palace. Ms. Hemsi exclaims at how lucky Ahmet is to have such good friends. Mrs. Sanders warns them about taking such risks again, but assures them that they won’t be suspended because they were trying to help Ahmet.
