The Worst Class Trip Ever

“None of this stuff would have happened if I hadn’t been sitting next to Matthew Diaz.”

The opening line of The Worst Class Trip Ever exemplifies the novel’s humorous, light-hearted tone. It also introduces the first-person point of view and the theme of The Dynamics of Friendship, creating suspense by immediately foreshadowing the eventful class trip to which the title alludes.

“Matt is my best friend. But he can be an idiot. But when we were in kindergarten, pretty much all the boys were idiots, so he didn’t stand out so much, and we became best friends. So now, even though we’re in eighth grade, and he’s sometimes unbelievably annoying, I’m kind of stuck with him.”

Illustrating The Dynamics of Friendship, Barry establishes Matt and Wyatt’s relationship at the beginning of the story to underline their shared history. Wyatt’s humorous tone also hints at his implicit trust in Matt, which later leads him to go along with his best friend’s wild conspiracy theories, and this trend fuels the plot as the boys engage in half-baked adventures throughout the story.

“My name is Wyatt Palmer. I’m an eighth grader at Culver Middle School in Miami. I know a lot of people think Miami is a weird place, but it’s my home, so I’m used to the kind of things that happen there that don’t happen in normal places.”

In this quote, the protagonist and narrator introduces himself with a straightforward and matter-of-fact tone that will persist throughout the narrative. He mentions a few basic facts about himself, but most significantly, he explains why he is used to strange events. This admission hints at his upcoming adventures and establishes his characteristically comical and overly dramatic tone.