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Gamer Girls #1
Gamer Girls: Gnat vs. Spyder (Gamer Girls)
Natalie has a secret. She's a gamer.
By day, Natalie is an average eighth grade student. At night, she's Gnat112! Living a double life is hard . . . and keeping a secret from your friends is even harder.
In this middle grade book (the first of an all-new series, Gamer Girls ), Natalie and her three BFFs learn to navigate the gamer world together, one girl at a time. This series is a great read for gamers and gamer enthusiasts of all kinds. Plus, there's the occasional middle school drama . . . if only Natalie could battle math teachers like video game aliens!
By day, Natalie is an average eighth grade student. At night, she's Gnat112! Living a double life is hard . . . and keeping a secret from your friends is even harder.
In this middle grade book (the first of an all-new series, Gamer Girls ), Natalie and her three BFFs learn to navigate the gamer world together, one girl at a time. This series is a great read for gamers and gamer enthusiasts of all kinds. Plus, there's the occasional middle school drama . . . if only Natalie could battle math teachers like video game aliens!
- GenresMiddle GradeAudiobook
1 pages, Audio CD
Published June 27, 2023
9 people are currently reading
37 people want to read
About the author
Andrea Towers
12 books22 followersAndrea Towers is a writer who has worked at Entertainment Weekly and Marvel. She is the author of the upcoming book GEEK GIRLS DON'T CRY: REAL-LIFE LESSON FROM FICTIONAL FEMALE CHARACTERS, which will be published on April 2, 2019 by Sterling. A lover of coffee, porgs, and all things fantasy, her work on pop culture/comics with a focus on female-led media has been published in print and online.
She currently lives in New York City. Tweet her at @_atowers or learn more about her at www.andrea-towers.com.
She currently lives in New York City. Tweet her at @_atowers or learn more about her at www.andrea-towers.com.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
October 16, 2022
Thank you, Andrews McMeel, for the advance reading copy.
Book one! Of a new upcoming series! And that too of gaming! With some amazing, lively characters!
I love how fun this book is. I love the main character (she's so active and actually the one with a good heart!).
I love the school environment and also the other side characters. Somehow it feels nostalgic to read about playing games together (the first Nokia times you know and the first video games we played everywhere!).
Love the first book. However, I am a bit underwhelmed with the illustrations. I hope it turns out better in the physical copy.
Excited for the upcoming sequel!
Book one! Of a new upcoming series! And that too of gaming! With some amazing, lively characters!
I love how fun this book is. I love the main character (she's so active and actually the one with a good heart!).
I love the school environment and also the other side characters. Somehow it feels nostalgic to read about playing games together (the first Nokia times you know and the first video games we played everywhere!).
Love the first book. However, I am a bit underwhelmed with the illustrations. I hope it turns out better in the physical copy.
Excited for the upcoming sequel!
January 25, 2023
Omg I loved this!! It’s a middle grade story about gaming, friendship & being yourself. The mc is a secret gamer girl, she spends every night battling her online nemesis at a pvp game but is too scared to tell anyone about her favourite hobby incase they judge her. But when a new girl who also games moves in next door & they start to get close, she soon realises that maybe she doesn’t have to hide it like she thought. Most of the story is her battling with this but the ending was definitely my favourite part.
The whole story was just such an easy and wholesome read. I wish I could’ve had a book like this when I was 13 as it would’ve 100% made me feel less alone. I highly recommend!!
Thank you to the publisher & netgalley for providing with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
The whole story was just such an easy and wholesome read. I wish I could’ve had a book like this when I was 13 as it would’ve 100% made me feel less alone. I highly recommend!!
Thank you to the publisher & netgalley for providing with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
December 2, 2022
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Natalie lives in New Jersey with her mother, who is a doctor, her father, who is a baker and does a lot of his work at home, and her much older sister Dylan, who works at an animal shelter and is thinking about moving out of the house. Nat has two good friends, Jess and Celia, but she doesn't tell them about her real passion, gaming. They are in to things like art and sports, and she is afraid to tell them that her ambition is to become a famous game streamer with a huge following. There is a girl in their class, Mel, who used to be Nat's neighbor, who does have a big internet following for her make up channel. Mel and Nat used to be friends, but drifted apart. Lucy moves into Mel's house, and she and Nat hit it off, especially since Lucy is a gamer. Nat still feels too insecure to tell even another gamer about her interests. Nat does introduce Lucy to Celia and Jess, and Lucy wants to show them how to play games. Nat still pretends she's not interested, until her lack of interest causes Lucy to have Celia and Jess over without her. Mel is giving a big party, and Nat and Lucy attend. Lucy brings her gaming console to the party, since it seems to be somewhat of a comfort when she is dealing with social anxiety, and Nat is shocked to see that other friends of Mel's are gamers, and that even people who don't game find the concept interesting. Nat gets up the courage to ask to be included in Lucy's gaming night so she can hang out with all of her friends. Will her cover as a competent gamer be blown?
N.B. This is not a graphic novel. I'm not the only reader who thought it was going to be!
Strengths: Middle school friend drama is always a popular topic, and Natalie's back and forth with her friends was well done. No one was super mean; even Mel was very friendly even though she was a little snooty about her success with her make up channel. There are some misunderstandings, but no fights, which was just a relief to see. I enjoyed the story line with how Nat felt about Dylan wanting to move out of the house, and there is some good representation mentioned briefly; Dylan is described as bisexual, and has a friend who is nonbinary. There are lots of good video game details about a fictional (?) game called Alienlord, and a fun twist about Nat's relationship to other players on the platform that is fun. There's a little social anxiety depicted, but nothing crippling. All in all, this was a fairly positive, fast paced book that had a fair number of fun spot illustrations and a good message about personal identity.
Weaknesses: It seemed odd to me that Nat would not tell her friends that she was a gamer. My students seem to tell everyone everything about themselves, and many of them seem to play video games, so I'm not sure why Nat was so ashamed. The lesson about being "unapologetically themselves" and sharing personal details with friends will resonate with the Kidlit community. Personally, I think telling children to do this is a bad, bad idea. I'm a firm believer that one should keep personal details to oneself. I also hate any kind of game playing. Here's a fun game-- let's see if peple troll me because I'M being unapologetically myself, but it's not a popular opinion.
What I really think: This is available in paperback, so would be a great gift for a gamer in elementary school or 6th grade. Even though Nat is in 8th grade, I'm not sure my actual 8th graders will feel this is old enough for them. It is also available in a Follettbound Glued version, and is the beginning of a series. Books with characters who play video games have been popular, and this will be a great companion to Markell's The Game Master of Garden Place, Schrieber's Game Over, Pete Watson, and all of the Minecraft novels.
Natalie lives in New Jersey with her mother, who is a doctor, her father, who is a baker and does a lot of his work at home, and her much older sister Dylan, who works at an animal shelter and is thinking about moving out of the house. Nat has two good friends, Jess and Celia, but she doesn't tell them about her real passion, gaming. They are in to things like art and sports, and she is afraid to tell them that her ambition is to become a famous game streamer with a huge following. There is a girl in their class, Mel, who used to be Nat's neighbor, who does have a big internet following for her make up channel. Mel and Nat used to be friends, but drifted apart. Lucy moves into Mel's house, and she and Nat hit it off, especially since Lucy is a gamer. Nat still feels too insecure to tell even another gamer about her interests. Nat does introduce Lucy to Celia and Jess, and Lucy wants to show them how to play games. Nat still pretends she's not interested, until her lack of interest causes Lucy to have Celia and Jess over without her. Mel is giving a big party, and Nat and Lucy attend. Lucy brings her gaming console to the party, since it seems to be somewhat of a comfort when she is dealing with social anxiety, and Nat is shocked to see that other friends of Mel's are gamers, and that even people who don't game find the concept interesting. Nat gets up the courage to ask to be included in Lucy's gaming night so she can hang out with all of her friends. Will her cover as a competent gamer be blown?
N.B. This is not a graphic novel. I'm not the only reader who thought it was going to be!
Strengths: Middle school friend drama is always a popular topic, and Natalie's back and forth with her friends was well done. No one was super mean; even Mel was very friendly even though she was a little snooty about her success with her make up channel. There are some misunderstandings, but no fights, which was just a relief to see. I enjoyed the story line with how Nat felt about Dylan wanting to move out of the house, and there is some good representation mentioned briefly; Dylan is described as bisexual, and has a friend who is nonbinary. There are lots of good video game details about a fictional (?) game called Alienlord, and a fun twist about Nat's relationship to other players on the platform that is fun. There's a little social anxiety depicted, but nothing crippling. All in all, this was a fairly positive, fast paced book that had a fair number of fun spot illustrations and a good message about personal identity.
Weaknesses: It seemed odd to me that Nat would not tell her friends that she was a gamer. My students seem to tell everyone everything about themselves, and many of them seem to play video games, so I'm not sure why Nat was so ashamed. The lesson about being "unapologetically themselves" and sharing personal details with friends will resonate with the Kidlit community. Personally, I think telling children to do this is a bad, bad idea. I'm a firm believer that one should keep personal details to oneself. I also hate any kind of game playing. Here's a fun game-- let's see if peple troll me because I'M being unapologetically myself, but it's not a popular opinion.
What I really think: This is available in paperback, so would be a great gift for a gamer in elementary school or 6th grade. Even though Nat is in 8th grade, I'm not sure my actual 8th graders will feel this is old enough for them. It is also available in a Follettbound Glued version, and is the beginning of a series. Books with characters who play video games have been popular, and this will be a great companion to Markell's The Game Master of Garden Place, Schrieber's Game Over, Pete Watson, and all of the Minecraft novels.
May 19, 2023
This is the start of a new series, and one that will hopefully be really cool for young girls that are interested in video games and digital media. I just have issues with the way this is shown in the book.
Nat is 13 and is very into video games, which is great! She wants to become a streamer with her favorite game, but her parents have no idea about it so her big sister, who is 22, helps her set up an account and she's allowed to stream with her sister around. Except, she's immediately hit with a lot of troll accounts and decides to stop streaming until she has thicker skin. She also has two best friends, one into art and one into sports, but she doesn't tell anyone about her interests in video games. Which I just find strange that she never told her friends about it.
Nat plays against one specific person, and messages them all the time. She then finds out that the new girl who moved in next door also plays video games, and she ends up introducing video games to Nat's friends. There's some miscommunication, wrong things said, but they are all friends in the end, with more adventures to come. It's sweet.
My issues come in with two things. One, you can definitely tell this is an adult pretending to write as a teen. It was very awkward to read and didn't flow very well. It just felt dumbed down instead of natural speaking. Which is fine, it's not written for me, but I know a lot of girls that would be interested in a book like this, but would be turned off by the writing style.
Two, there is literally no discussion of internet safety or the dangers of 13 year olds streaming themselves online. At most we get the older sister saying "don't feed the trolls". Another friend of Nat's has started a beauty channel that received instant fame (which isn't realistic) and now has all these major sponsor deals, with no discussion of the risks behind that. There's also no talk about keeping yourself safe, or not sharing information, and while it's kind of hinted it just does a poor job of it. And considering 13 year olds can start their own YouTube channels and tiktoks, this needs to be mentioned, even if it's the older sister doing it. Also, the parents have no idea what their child is doing on the computer, who she is talking to, and what information is being shared. This really should have been mentioned, or have the parents involved somewhat. It just made it seem very easy and instantaneous, and nothing bad will happen.
I want more girl gamers and I'm excited there's books for them, I just want more safety included, even if it's subtle.
Nat is 13 and is very into video games, which is great! She wants to become a streamer with her favorite game, but her parents have no idea about it so her big sister, who is 22, helps her set up an account and she's allowed to stream with her sister around. Except, she's immediately hit with a lot of troll accounts and decides to stop streaming until she has thicker skin. She also has two best friends, one into art and one into sports, but she doesn't tell anyone about her interests in video games. Which I just find strange that she never told her friends about it.
Nat plays against one specific person, and messages them all the time. She then finds out that the new girl who moved in next door also plays video games, and she ends up introducing video games to Nat's friends. There's some miscommunication, wrong things said, but they are all friends in the end, with more adventures to come. It's sweet.
My issues come in with two things. One, you can definitely tell this is an adult pretending to write as a teen. It was very awkward to read and didn't flow very well. It just felt dumbed down instead of natural speaking. Which is fine, it's not written for me, but I know a lot of girls that would be interested in a book like this, but would be turned off by the writing style.
Two, there is literally no discussion of internet safety or the dangers of 13 year olds streaming themselves online. At most we get the older sister saying "don't feed the trolls". Another friend of Nat's has started a beauty channel that received instant fame (which isn't realistic) and now has all these major sponsor deals, with no discussion of the risks behind that. There's also no talk about keeping yourself safe, or not sharing information, and while it's kind of hinted it just does a poor job of it. And considering 13 year olds can start their own YouTube channels and tiktoks, this needs to be mentioned, even if it's the older sister doing it. Also, the parents have no idea what their child is doing on the computer, who she is talking to, and what information is being shared. This really should have been mentioned, or have the parents involved somewhat. It just made it seem very easy and instantaneous, and nothing bad will happen.
I want more girl gamers and I'm excited there's books for them, I just want more safety included, even if it's subtle.
January 17, 2023
Thank you so much to Andrews McMeel Publishing for the ARC audiobook.
I first want to say that I feel like the book and audiobook cover could be improved. It's not the most eyecatching and the text is literally but really, actually pixelated. Perhaps its the low image quality? It's just really hard to read if the viewer is not up close.
This was a very light and comfortable read (I finished it in one sitting), though I felt like it was longer than it should be as the whole book only revolved around one major conflict: Natalie not wanting people to know that she is a gamer. Readers could find it dragging and repetitive. I know I kinda did. I would also like to point out that the characters don't feel very... three dimensional? Aside from Natalie I don't really see them evolve. None of them also seem to have flaws and I don't find myself connecting to any of them.
Nevertheless, I do agree that it's important to teach kids, girls especially, that they shouldn't be afraid to have hobbies that don't seem fitting to their gender. Because no hobby is actually 'ungirly' and good friends will never be unsupportive of something you're passionate about.
Additional commendation to Taylor Meskimen. The narration was very good.
I first want to say that I feel like the book and audiobook cover could be improved. It's not the most eyecatching and the text is literally but really, actually pixelated. Perhaps its the low image quality? It's just really hard to read if the viewer is not up close.
This was a very light and comfortable read (I finished it in one sitting), though I felt like it was longer than it should be as the whole book only revolved around one major conflict: Natalie not wanting people to know that she is a gamer. Readers could find it dragging and repetitive. I know I kinda did. I would also like to point out that the characters don't feel very... three dimensional? Aside from Natalie I don't really see them evolve. None of them also seem to have flaws and I don't find myself connecting to any of them.
Nevertheless, I do agree that it's important to teach kids, girls especially, that they shouldn't be afraid to have hobbies that don't seem fitting to their gender. Because no hobby is actually 'ungirly' and good friends will never be unsupportive of something you're passionate about.
Additional commendation to Taylor Meskimen. The narration was very good.
August 24, 2022
I received a free eARC of this book so I could read and review it. Thank you for the opportunity.
Natalie is a gamer, As Gnat112, she can do anything. Except her first attempt at streaming went badly, and now she’s scared to tell anyone about that second part of her life now.
This one took me a bit to get into because, frankly, the idea of a tween being embarrassed to have her friends find out she’s a gamer just didn’t make sense. It’s such a common activity that it’s almost the other way around-kids are embarrassed if they don’t have a Switch, Xbox or PlayStation.
But, at the same time, Natalie’s social anxiety also rang true in a lot of ways, and I think she will be relatable to middle grade readers. The illustrations help support the story and will also be appealing, and will make the book less imposing to reluctant readers.
I think this is a good start to what is likely to be a popular series. It isn’t a book that I would assign for required reading, but it’s worth including in school and classroom libraries.
Natalie is a gamer, As Gnat112, she can do anything. Except her first attempt at streaming went badly, and now she’s scared to tell anyone about that second part of her life now.
This one took me a bit to get into because, frankly, the idea of a tween being embarrassed to have her friends find out she’s a gamer just didn’t make sense. It’s such a common activity that it’s almost the other way around-kids are embarrassed if they don’t have a Switch, Xbox or PlayStation.
But, at the same time, Natalie’s social anxiety also rang true in a lot of ways, and I think she will be relatable to middle grade readers. The illustrations help support the story and will also be appealing, and will make the book less imposing to reluctant readers.
I think this is a good start to what is likely to be a popular series. It isn’t a book that I would assign for required reading, but it’s worth including in school and classroom libraries.
January 22, 2023
Thirteen year old Natalie has a secret, she is a gamer and regurlarly streams her favourite game, Alienlord, where she is known as Gnat112. But after a bad run in with some of the bad seeds of gaming, she keeps her identity a secret from her friends. But when a new girl moves in next door, her secret is about to be revealed once and for all.
As a lifelong casual gamer myself I really enjoyed reading this one, its a hard world out there especially as a young girl in the gaming world. I would recommend this to anyone interested in gaming and graphic novels. I would say this is a great read for children between 9-13. The characters were nicely written with their own strenghts, characteristics and flaws, and adds a lot of diversity.
Thank you to the publisher, the author and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC!
As a lifelong casual gamer myself I really enjoyed reading this one, its a hard world out there especially as a young girl in the gaming world. I would recommend this to anyone interested in gaming and graphic novels. I would say this is a great read for children between 9-13. The characters were nicely written with their own strenghts, characteristics and flaws, and adds a lot of diversity.
Thank you to the publisher, the author and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC!
January 7, 2023
Thirteen-year-old Natalie lives a double life. By day, she's an average eighth grader at Golden Trails Middle. At night, she's Gnat112, a streamer for her favorite video game, Alienlord. But when the new girl moves in next door, will Natalie's double life be revealed?
This book is the perfect book for 9-12 year olds to read. Natalie the main character is very flawed in the way that a normal 13 year old would be. Her other friends also feel like real people, they all had their own personalities that made them stand out. There is a lot of diversity in the book but it never once felt like it was put there to check off any boxes.
I really enjoyed this book, even though I’m much older than the target demographic and I am excited to get copies of it for the kids in my life!
This book is the perfect book for 9-12 year olds to read. Natalie the main character is very flawed in the way that a normal 13 year old would be. Her other friends also feel like real people, they all had their own personalities that made them stand out. There is a lot of diversity in the book but it never once felt like it was put there to check off any boxes.
I really enjoyed this book, even though I’m much older than the target demographic and I am excited to get copies of it for the kids in my life!
August 12, 2022
As a "Gamer Girl" (aka a Gamer) myself, I really liked this book.
Gnat vs. Spyder by Andrea Towers is the first novel in her new Gamer Girls series, about a girl named Natalie as she and her three BFFs learn to navigate the gamer world together, one girl at a time. This series is a great read for gamers and gamer enthusiasts of all kinds. Plus, there's the occasional middle school drama . . . if only Natalie could battle math teachers like video game aliens!
A great read for middle age kids interested in all things gaming related. I really enjoyed the Bryan O'Malley-esque illustrations throughout, and found the occasional retro-arcade style font usage to be quite endearing.
Gnat vs. Spyder by Andrea Towers is the first novel in her new Gamer Girls series, about a girl named Natalie as she and her three BFFs learn to navigate the gamer world together, one girl at a time. This series is a great read for gamers and gamer enthusiasts of all kinds. Plus, there's the occasional middle school drama . . . if only Natalie could battle math teachers like video game aliens!
A great read for middle age kids interested in all things gaming related. I really enjoyed the Bryan O'Malley-esque illustrations throughout, and found the occasional retro-arcade style font usage to be quite endearing.
February 19, 2024
Cute and enjoyable. Especially with some very wholesome friendships and family relationships. Quite a bit of the plot was unbelievable as far as a character wanting to keep her desire to game and stream a secret from friends and for said friends to be so clueless about gaming. Gaming is so very pervasive in middle school that it just seemed unlikely that 8th graders wouldn't know that there were building/designing games or artwork created for gaming or what a handheld console looked like.
My 8 year old enjoyed it though and would likely read the rest of the series. The audiobook included some great gaming sound effects.
My 8 year old enjoyed it though and would likely read the rest of the series. The audiobook included some great gaming sound effects.
December 12, 2022
Thank you to Andrews McMeel Publishing for this eARC!
I don't read a lot of middle grade novels, but I think it's important to know what's being written out there for the next generation. What I really appreciated about this one was there was a ton of representation without making it seem like the author was trying too hard. It reminded of of the movie 'Turning Red'- the group of 4 girls who are just trying to navigate through their preteen years.
I think the writing was a bit.. mature? I am assuming the intended audience is preteens, so I was surprised at some of the words the author chose to include. Again, I don't read middle grade often, so maybe that's just normal.
You don't need to be a "gamer girl" to enjoy this story about learning to feel comfortable in your own skin and gain confidence in who you are. If this is what the kids are going to be reading in 2023 (January 31, to be specific😋), it's got my vote.
I don't read a lot of middle grade novels, but I think it's important to know what's being written out there for the next generation. What I really appreciated about this one was there was a ton of representation without making it seem like the author was trying too hard. It reminded of of the movie 'Turning Red'- the group of 4 girls who are just trying to navigate through their preteen years.
I think the writing was a bit.. mature? I am assuming the intended audience is preteens, so I was surprised at some of the words the author chose to include. Again, I don't read middle grade often, so maybe that's just normal.
You don't need to be a "gamer girl" to enjoy this story about learning to feel comfortable in your own skin and gain confidence in who you are. If this is what the kids are going to be reading in 2023 (January 31, to be specific😋), it's got my vote.
May 26, 2024
DNF. I thought the illustrations were annoying. I'm still rating it three stars because maybe this book isn't for me. The plot didn't seem like anything special. I had trouble caring for the main character, even the I'm usually all over characters who are similar to me.
Edit: I typically enjoy books with characters who are in middle school. I should've loved this book. I like reading Sprinkle Sundaes and Cupcake Diaries. Even though the characters could use some depth and none of them are gamers.
Edit: I typically enjoy books with characters who are in middle school. I should've loved this book. I like reading Sprinkle Sundaes and Cupcake Diaries. Even though the characters could use some depth and none of them are gamers.
August 22, 2022
3/5 stars!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I'm a bit disappointed because I thought this is going to be a full-on graphic novel, instead it has more text/words than the beautiful illustrations. Other than that, I find the story of our two main characters to be quite fun and interesting to read as we follow them on their gamer girl life and finding their identity.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I'm a bit disappointed because I thought this is going to be a full-on graphic novel, instead it has more text/words than the beautiful illustrations. Other than that, I find the story of our two main characters to be quite fun and interesting to read as we follow them on their gamer girl life and finding their identity.
January 5, 2024
This was an adorable read! I loved how it touched on being yourself and being ok with being yourself at a young-ish age. It's a great example of being tempted to hide your interests, but learning not to. Plus I always enjoy some gamer rep, whether it be people getting into gaming or people who already love it. This is a great book for younger readers who are gamers themselves, or any that might be struggling with navigating friendships and such. All in all a fun read!
December 12, 2024
Such a cute kids book! Even better as an audio book! There were tons of cool sound effects throughout it. This is a book about a gamer that has hidden it from her friends because she doesn’t think they will like her for it. Then a new girl comes to town and everything changes! I loved how different this book was! It really brought out a new kind of kid! It is a series so I might keep going. It sounds like a good series but you don’t need to continue if you didn’t want to.
July 26, 2023
This was such a fun middle grade book. Girls can play games too for sure. I love Natalie. I love the friendships. There was a lot of character growth in this one. Natalie learns to be herself and grow up some. I will definitely be reading more in this series. I loved the narration. Thank you to NetGalley and Andrew McMeel Audio for the arc in exchange for my honest review.
September 6, 2023
This was a really cute book all about being true to yourself. I really enjoyed reading about Natalie and her friends. I related to her gaming since I'm also a gamer girl. I liked that in the end she was able to be herself with her friends. I think that this teaches a great lesson to kids about being true to yourself and loving your hobbies even though not everyone is going to get it.
July 23, 2023
A super cute read for tween girls that gently and sweetly tackles a variety of things: from keeping secrets, feeling insecure, friendship, and even a brief mention of non-binary and bisexual characters.
August 14, 2023
Fantastic read
Would recommend to others
Would recommend to others
October 9, 2023
Good book…..BUT it’s SUPER long
February 26, 2023
Special thanks to the author(s), publisher, Goodreads and/or NetGalley for the review copy. All views and opinions expressed are honest and my own.
Natalie is a gamer but because she’s had a bad run-in with live streaming once, she’s kept it a secret while desiring to live stream. Now things are changing in her world. Her ex best friend, Mel has a popular YouTube channel on fashion, her sister is moving out and the new neighbor’s kid is a proud gamer who may just be giving away her long kept secret.
This book is a fast read with multiple images throughout. The writing style is simple and easy to understand. It flows and reads similar to a child’s thoughts or words which is great since it’s written in Natalie’s perspective. Honestly, the cute pixel game styled images were cute and would appeal to a lot of readers. They don’t directly relate to the story but are words from Natalie’s inner thoughts most times. They were interesting additions, however they weren’t consistent in their appearance.
The characters are all very nice in this book. That is to say, there is no real villain, yet it’s an enjoyable read. Natalie is a good character and tried her best at every opportunity to understand the other person and admit her mistakes. Natalie’s social anxiety was relatable on many occasions as well. I liked how it was depicted. Natalie’s friends, Cecilia, Jess and Lucy were also all great including Mel. I liked how each girl was different and they had very different hobbies or interests which made them stand out in their own ways. Their personalities were probably not unique given their interests but that’s pretty typical in most books.
There is also a fair bit of diversity in this book but it’s not expanded or highlighted. The book introduces and interweaves it into the story as if it’s commonplace, like it’s always been that way and there’s no difference. I actually liked it because it felt normal.
I disliked how Natalie didn’t fully address why she was uncomfortable with telling her secret. An event triggered Natalie to keep her gaming a secret from her friends, Cecila and Jess which later causes her issues when Lucy joins their friend cycle. I wish that initial point was discussed or at least noted because it stayed on Natalie’s mind for a long time. Also if Natalie brought it up, it would teach everyone to be careful of their words cause you never know when you might unintentionally hurt someone.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and devoured it fairly quickly. I liked how it was a fast read with a lot of different key areas that would be great for discussions. This is a series so I’m interested to see where we go in the next volume as this was a happy ending!
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Natalie is a gamer but because she’s had a bad run-in with live streaming once, she’s kept it a secret while desiring to live stream. Now things are changing in her world. Her ex best friend, Mel has a popular YouTube channel on fashion, her sister is moving out and the new neighbor’s kid is a proud gamer who may just be giving away her long kept secret.
This book is a fast read with multiple images throughout. The writing style is simple and easy to understand. It flows and reads similar to a child’s thoughts or words which is great since it’s written in Natalie’s perspective. Honestly, the cute pixel game styled images were cute and would appeal to a lot of readers. They don’t directly relate to the story but are words from Natalie’s inner thoughts most times. They were interesting additions, however they weren’t consistent in their appearance.
The characters are all very nice in this book. That is to say, there is no real villain, yet it’s an enjoyable read. Natalie is a good character and tried her best at every opportunity to understand the other person and admit her mistakes. Natalie’s social anxiety was relatable on many occasions as well. I liked how it was depicted. Natalie’s friends, Cecilia, Jess and Lucy were also all great including Mel. I liked how each girl was different and they had very different hobbies or interests which made them stand out in their own ways. Their personalities were probably not unique given their interests but that’s pretty typical in most books.
There is also a fair bit of diversity in this book but it’s not expanded or highlighted. The book introduces and interweaves it into the story as if it’s commonplace, like it’s always been that way and there’s no difference. I actually liked it because it felt normal.
I disliked how Natalie didn’t fully address why she was uncomfortable with telling her secret. An event triggered Natalie to keep her gaming a secret from her friends, Cecila and Jess which later causes her issues when Lucy joins their friend cycle. I wish that initial point was discussed or at least noted because it stayed on Natalie’s mind for a long time. Also if Natalie brought it up, it would teach everyone to be careful of their words cause you never know when you might unintentionally hurt someone.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and devoured it fairly quickly. I liked how it was a fast read with a lot of different key areas that would be great for discussions. This is a series so I’m interested to see where we go in the next volume as this was a happy ending!
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January 22, 2023
Gnat vs. Spyder by Andrea Towers
Published January 31st 2023
<3 This was quite an enjoyable #audiobooking experience. The cover art got it all wrong IMO, the language was for a more mature audience. The cover led me to believe that this was for grade school kids. I love the #girlpower message and the mentioning of gender identities and smashing the stereotyping of traditional gender roles. The narrator's performance was quite impressive and kept me engaged throughout this after school special drama. I highly recommend it for teen girls but it makes for a quick entertaining and relatable read for any gender or age. <3
#GnatvsSpyder #NetGalley
Thirteen-year-old Natalie lives a double life. By day, she’s an average eighth grader at Golden Trails Middle. At night, she’s Gnat112, a streamer for her favorite video game, Alienlord. But when the new girl moves in next door, will Natalie's double life be revealed?
Natalie has a secret. She's a gamer.
By day, Natalie is an average eighth grade student. At night, she's Gnat112! Living a double life is hard . . . and keeping a secret from your friends is even harder.
In this illustrated middle grade book (the first of an all-new series, Gamer Girls), Natalie and her three BFFs learn to navigate the gamer world together, one girl at a time. This series is a great read for gamers and gamer enthusiasts of all kinds. Plus, there's the occasional middle school drama . . . if only Natalie could battle math teachers like video game aliens!
Published January 31st 2023
<3 This was quite an enjoyable #audiobooking experience. The cover art got it all wrong IMO, the language was for a more mature audience. The cover led me to believe that this was for grade school kids. I love the #girlpower message and the mentioning of gender identities and smashing the stereotyping of traditional gender roles. The narrator's performance was quite impressive and kept me engaged throughout this after school special drama. I highly recommend it for teen girls but it makes for a quick entertaining and relatable read for any gender or age. <3
#GnatvsSpyder #NetGalley
Thirteen-year-old Natalie lives a double life. By day, she’s an average eighth grader at Golden Trails Middle. At night, she’s Gnat112, a streamer for her favorite video game, Alienlord. But when the new girl moves in next door, will Natalie's double life be revealed?
Natalie has a secret. She's a gamer.
By day, Natalie is an average eighth grade student. At night, she's Gnat112! Living a double life is hard . . . and keeping a secret from your friends is even harder.
In this illustrated middle grade book (the first of an all-new series, Gamer Girls), Natalie and her three BFFs learn to navigate the gamer world together, one girl at a time. This series is a great read for gamers and gamer enthusiasts of all kinds. Plus, there's the occasional middle school drama . . . if only Natalie could battle math teachers like video game aliens!
February 10, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC audiobook.
Eighth-grader Natalie has a secret: she is a Gnat112, a talented gamer whose game of choice is Alien Lord. While Natalie sometimes enjoys having a secret life and identity, she also wants to become a streamer, but her fear of judgement from both internet trolls and her peers keeps her from revealing her secret identity to anyone but her encouraging big sister Dylan. Her secret is threatened, however, when a new girl named Lucy moves in next door and introduces Natalie's friends to the world of gaming.
This middle-grade novel is a fun read, and reveals how different growing up is in the era of social media influencers and content creators. Andrea Towers has written a story accessible to gamers and non-gamers alike, ripe with realistic middle grade relationships, and effortless inclusion of diversity, Gamer Girls was a joy to listen to and I would recommend it to any child (middle-to-upper elementary age) who enjoys gaming.
The audiobook reader was engaging, and the audiobook included game sounds and noises to accompany specific moments in the book that children will find entertaining.
Eighth-grader Natalie has a secret: she is a Gnat112, a talented gamer whose game of choice is Alien Lord. While Natalie sometimes enjoys having a secret life and identity, she also wants to become a streamer, but her fear of judgement from both internet trolls and her peers keeps her from revealing her secret identity to anyone but her encouraging big sister Dylan. Her secret is threatened, however, when a new girl named Lucy moves in next door and introduces Natalie's friends to the world of gaming.
This middle-grade novel is a fun read, and reveals how different growing up is in the era of social media influencers and content creators. Andrea Towers has written a story accessible to gamers and non-gamers alike, ripe with realistic middle grade relationships, and effortless inclusion of diversity, Gamer Girls was a joy to listen to and I would recommend it to any child (middle-to-upper elementary age) who enjoys gaming.
The audiobook reader was engaging, and the audiobook included game sounds and noises to accompany specific moments in the book that children will find entertaining.
January 20, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Audio, Andrews McMeel Publishing for the audiobook version of this book. Everything I write is of my own personal thoughts, feelings, and opinions. I am in no way affiliated with or compensated for my review.
I listened to this audiobook with my grade school child. This was her first chapter audiobook and she really enjoyed it. She said she wants to listen to it again and again until the next book in the series comes out.
the book is about a group of friends that do not know each other like the world of gaming. Natalie is a really good gamer and is well known in the gaming community. When a new person moves next-door to her she right away calls Natalie out for being this amazing gamer- Natalie doesn't know how to react as she has kept this a secret. Everything works out in the end. It is a good book to teach kids .
I listened to this audiobook with my grade school child. This was her first chapter audiobook and she really enjoyed it. She said she wants to listen to it again and again until the next book in the series comes out.
the book is about a group of friends that do not know each other like the world of gaming. Natalie is a really good gamer and is well known in the gaming community. When a new person moves next-door to her she right away calls Natalie out for being this amazing gamer- Natalie doesn't know how to react as she has kept this a secret. Everything works out in the end. It is a good book to teach kids .
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