Hope and Resilience
A Must Read
ABOUT THE BOOK
A young boy struggles with body image in this poignant middle grade journey to self-acceptance told through prose, verse, and illustration.
Will is the only round kid in a school full of string beans. So he hides…in baggy jeans and oversized hoodies, in the back row during class, and anywhere but the cafeteria during lunch. But shame isn’t the only feeling that dominates Will’s life. He’s also got a crush on a girl named Jules who knows he doesn’t have a chance with—string beans only date string beans—but he can’t help wondering what if?
Will’s best shot at attracting Jules’s attention is by slaying the Will Monster inside him by changing his eating habits and getting more exercise. But the results are either frustratingly slow or infuriatingly unsuccessful, and Will’s shame begins to morph into self-loathing.
As he resorts to increasingly drastic measures to transform his appearance, Will meets skateboarder Markus, who helps him see his body and all it contains as an ever-evolving work in progress.
- Publisher : Aladdin
- Publication Date: May 2, 2023
- Hardcover : 368 pages
What’s Being Said
“A successful marriage of art and poetry.”
–Kirkus Reviews
* “A perceptive representation of recovery and self-acceptance.”
–Publishers Weekly, starred review
Excerpt
copyright Simon Kids
I’m not gonna lie, when I read that this was written in verse, I took a step back. I wasn’t sure it would be a good fit for me. All I could think of was rhyming poetry, As you might guess, my understanding of poetry is quite limited. But here’s the honest-to-goodness-truth: I loved this non-traditional way of sharing a story. It absolutely hit the bull’s eye for me.
This illustrated novel is in the form of a lined journal. The pages will draw in bookworms, reluctant readers, lovers of graphic novels, and even adults. Why? The pages are eye-catching and the story is relatable, in various ways, to everyone.
Middle schooler Will Chambers, like many kids, allows himself to put too much emphasis on what someone says about him. When a bully calls him fat, Will takes it to heart, becomes fixated on it, pulls away from his friends, and quickly develops a poor self-image and eating disorder.
Lerner does a fabulous job of exhibiting Will’s emotions through the illustrations, doodles, and broken verse.
My Concerns
Nothing comes to mind.
Final Thoughts
This isn’t just a book for those who might feel overweight. To a larger degree, it points out how damaging our reactions can be to our preconceived self-image. In fact, I love this text from the book:
And it’s not long before
you don’t even need
the Nick Fishers of the world
to be there
to tell you what they think
of you – –
what the whole entire world thinks
of you – –
that you are less than
you
are
inferior
you
are an animal
not worthy
of kindness
or consideration
or respect.
Soon enough
you take care
of saying all that
for them.
You start thinking
just like they do.
You start hurling
the insults
at yourself.
You become
your own
bully.
And you do the job better
than anyone else
possibly
could.
This story not only offers lots to think about but also opens the door for discussions. And, in this case, I think it’s very meaningful that the MC is a male. It’s not just females who suffer
I hope it finds its way not only to homes but to libraries and classrooms.
My thanks to Wunderkind PR and the publisher for a gifted copy. I was under no obligation to post a positive review.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR/ILLUSTRATOR
Jarrett Lerner is the award-winning creator of more than a dozen books for kids, including the EngiNerds series of middle grade novels, the Geeger the Robot series of early chapter books, the Hunger Heroes series of graphic novel chapter books, two activity books, the illustrated novel in verse A Work in Progress, and the Nat the Cat series of early readers. You can find him online at JarrettLerner.com and on Twitter and Instagram at @Jarrett_Lerner. He lives with his wife and daughters in Massachusetts.
Fun Video For Illustrators
