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Advice from a 12-Year-Old Nobody
Not yet published
Expected 7 Apr 26Vinny needs support from his agony-aunt mum, but she’s too busy helping other people to notice in this empathetic tale about family and mental health by bestseller Helen Rutter.
Vinny’s got problems – lots of them. His family seems to be falling apart and his best mates have dumped him. He should be able to turn to his mum for help– as an online agony aunt, she answers other people’s problems for a living. But she’s too busy to see that Vinny is really struggling.
Unable to solve his own issues, Vinny starts replying to unanswered posts on an old blog of his mum’s. At first the solutions seem easy but what will happen when the problems get more serious and Vinny realises he’s out of his depth?
Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.
Vinny’s got problems – lots of them. His family seems to be falling apart and his best mates have dumped him. He should be able to turn to his mum for help– as an online agony aunt, she answers other people’s problems for a living. But she’s too busy to see that Vinny is really struggling.
Unable to solve his own issues, Vinny starts replying to unanswered posts on an old blog of his mum’s. At first the solutions seem easy but what will happen when the problems get more serious and Vinny realises he’s out of his depth?
Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.
120 pages, Paperback
Expected publication April 7, 2026
4 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 6, 2025
“All the problems, whatever they are, exist because people don’t talk about them and don’t listen to each other.”
Vinny is struggling to understand life and how he fits in; mum isn’t talking to him anymore as she gives advice to others online; dad is never home ; sister Mabel is always shut away in her bedroom and his two best Dungeon and Dragon pals now want to hang out with girls.
Being a geek is never easy. Not fitting in and not really wanting to. Then Vinny discovers his mum’s old online advice blog - it’s no longer used so he changes the title and starts to disperse words of wisdom ..then life changes.
Helen Rutter really knows how to tap into the mind and dilemmas of the 10-13 year old age group. All her books are great reads - funny, emotional but ultimately full of understanding and compassion towards a very challenging period in life
Advice from a 12- Year- Old Nobody is another brilliant Barrington Stoke pitch perfect book for reluctant readers from 10 upwards who sometimes find reading a challenge but don’t want stories for younger children.
Julia Christian’s’ illustrations add pathos and a charm but ultimately it’s the sensitive ( with humour) of Helen Ritter’s writing that makes this a highly recommended book for individual readers, a PSHE discussion or even short class read in upper key stage 2
Another winner- highly recommended
Thank you to Barrington Stoke and NetGalley for the advance copy
Vinny is struggling to understand life and how he fits in; mum isn’t talking to him anymore as she gives advice to others online; dad is never home ; sister Mabel is always shut away in her bedroom and his two best Dungeon and Dragon pals now want to hang out with girls.
Being a geek is never easy. Not fitting in and not really wanting to. Then Vinny discovers his mum’s old online advice blog - it’s no longer used so he changes the title and starts to disperse words of wisdom ..then life changes.
Helen Rutter really knows how to tap into the mind and dilemmas of the 10-13 year old age group. All her books are great reads - funny, emotional but ultimately full of understanding and compassion towards a very challenging period in life
Advice from a 12- Year- Old Nobody is another brilliant Barrington Stoke pitch perfect book for reluctant readers from 10 upwards who sometimes find reading a challenge but don’t want stories for younger children.
Julia Christian’s’ illustrations add pathos and a charm but ultimately it’s the sensitive ( with humour) of Helen Ritter’s writing that makes this a highly recommended book for individual readers, a PSHE discussion or even short class read in upper key stage 2
Another winner- highly recommended
Thank you to Barrington Stoke and NetGalley for the advance copy
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Short but poignant and relatable family issues story
This felt relevant and contemporary. Vinny is 12 and not happy, not that he tells his family how he feels. His mum is a self-made advice guru online, helping other people with their questions but not noticing her son has some of his own, and needs her attention. His Dad seems to be staying late at the office all the time now, sometimes sleeping there. His big sister has running make-up and it doesn't seem like it's just being a 'teenager'. Even his only two nerdy friends at school seem to be pulling away from him and their Dungeons and Dragon games to hang out with a couple of girls.
So it feels good to him when Vinny browses through his Mum's old and forgotten advice threads online, and feels he could offer some 12-year-old answers to some questions being asked, that he knows nobody else will.
Some of it is obvious. Funny shaped mole? Go to the doctor! Not letting your 16 year old go to a party? Trust him a bit more! But this '12 year old nobody' can't help everyone and needs help himself. Can he ask for help, will anyone spot he's drowning in worry and needs his own agony aunt?!
Great lessons here in a really interesting tale, I love seeing a young person's responses to real-life-type questions - they make a lot of sense! Readers will relate to the sort of problems Vinny is experiencing and hopefully gain confidence from this short story in how to deal with issues.
This is a dyslexia-friendly title, designed for children with a lower reading age compared to their biological age, and you wouldn't know. It doesn't feel simplistic or talk down to readers, it's still a relevant and engaging story, just that bit shorter. I've read Rutter's titles before and enjoyed the topics she covers and her writing style.
Nothing unsuitable here for someone 7 or 8, though the issues may be upsetting for sensitive readers going through something similar.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.
Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.
This felt relevant and contemporary. Vinny is 12 and not happy, not that he tells his family how he feels. His mum is a self-made advice guru online, helping other people with their questions but not noticing her son has some of his own, and needs her attention. His Dad seems to be staying late at the office all the time now, sometimes sleeping there. His big sister has running make-up and it doesn't seem like it's just being a 'teenager'. Even his only two nerdy friends at school seem to be pulling away from him and their Dungeons and Dragon games to hang out with a couple of girls.
So it feels good to him when Vinny browses through his Mum's old and forgotten advice threads online, and feels he could offer some 12-year-old answers to some questions being asked, that he knows nobody else will.
Some of it is obvious. Funny shaped mole? Go to the doctor! Not letting your 16 year old go to a party? Trust him a bit more! But this '12 year old nobody' can't help everyone and needs help himself. Can he ask for help, will anyone spot he's drowning in worry and needs his own agony aunt?!
Great lessons here in a really interesting tale, I love seeing a young person's responses to real-life-type questions - they make a lot of sense! Readers will relate to the sort of problems Vinny is experiencing and hopefully gain confidence from this short story in how to deal with issues.
This is a dyslexia-friendly title, designed for children with a lower reading age compared to their biological age, and you wouldn't know. It doesn't feel simplistic or talk down to readers, it's still a relevant and engaging story, just that bit shorter. I've read Rutter's titles before and enjoyed the topics she covers and her writing style.
Nothing unsuitable here for someone 7 or 8, though the issues may be upsetting for sensitive readers going through something similar.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.
Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
A further Barrington Stoke book from this author regarding a young kid and his mental capacity for working out all his issues, but better than the previous example I'd read. Vinny is seeing his world get more and more awkward – his best friends have found girls, and therefore dropped their weekly D&D session, his dad is more and more absent, his older sister is getting more and more moody-teeny. And to cap it all off, this is all entirely at odds with the glossy, lifestyle queen persona her mother has online, what with her very successful agony aunt/advice website. But even with that success, Vinny is the last person you'd think able to give similar life tips and influence online, right?
This is a short novel with an inbuilt irony – and a layer of irony added on to that. A lot of the advice Vinny gives, under the persona mentioned in the title, is to talk – and yet that is what he never does regarding his own issues. The irony, right? Except he clearly is – he's telling us what is going on, ergo he's talking while the narrative is pretending he never talks. I think you can just about ignore that second layer, and bear in mind how obvious the first one is or is not to the target reader – this is with an interest rated 9+ but with a reading difficulty of 8yo.
Either way – however obvious you see the route to Vinny's lessening of his unhappiness – the closing section is done very finely indeed, and this could well prove the emotional read it intends to be. A lot of this is relatable (even if it might seem to bodge the fact Vinny can just rename an old account of his mother's pre-fame online life), and even if you don't like the narrative, it only speaks the truth. Go to the doctor, get adult advice, and talk. All told, kids talking about this book should not be unexpected.
This is a short novel with an inbuilt irony – and a layer of irony added on to that. A lot of the advice Vinny gives, under the persona mentioned in the title, is to talk – and yet that is what he never does regarding his own issues. The irony, right? Except he clearly is – he's telling us what is going on, ergo he's talking while the narrative is pretending he never talks. I think you can just about ignore that second layer, and bear in mind how obvious the first one is or is not to the target reader – this is with an interest rated 9+ but with a reading difficulty of 8yo.
Either way – however obvious you see the route to Vinny's lessening of his unhappiness – the closing section is done very finely indeed, and this could well prove the emotional read it intends to be. A lot of this is relatable (even if it might seem to bodge the fact Vinny can just rename an old account of his mother's pre-fame online life), and even if you don't like the narrative, it only speaks the truth. Go to the doctor, get adult advice, and talk. All told, kids talking about this book should not be unexpected.
November 8, 2025
Ever since his mother became a popular advice columnist, she no longer has time to talk to Vinny. His father is never alone. His sister is upset and doesn’t want anything to do with him. So, what does he do, but hijack and old site his mother used to give advice on, before she became famous, and rewrite it as “Advice from a 12-year-old Nobody”.
He figures he has read enough of his mother’s advice that he knows what to tell them. But this isn’t the same as actually talking to his mother.
It is all about communication. Between Vinny and his mom and his whole family.
A very quick read, full of humor and of course heartache. It is very clear how frustrated Vinny is without being able to talk to his mother or rather because they are both wrapped up in their old things.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book is coming out on the 7th of April 2026.
He figures he has read enough of his mother’s advice that he knows what to tell them. But this isn’t the same as actually talking to his mother.
It is all about communication. Between Vinny and his mom and his whole family.
A very quick read, full of humor and of course heartache. It is very clear how frustrated Vinny is without being able to talk to his mother or rather because they are both wrapped up in their old things.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book is coming out on the 7th of April 2026.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Vinny has lots of problems.
His best friends have discovered girls, and seem to think being with them is better than being with Vinny.
Dad isn't coming home everyday.
His brother is upset about something but isn't talking to him.
His mum is a life coach - she literally sorts other peoples problems out! But doesn't seem to have time to talk to Vinny.
He starts replying to messages on one of her old blogs - they messaged ages ago so she clearly didn't use it. He doesn't pretend to be her - he says the posts are from a '12 year old nobody' .
All is ok until he gets worried, then he gets found out. Is this the turning point? Will Vinny finally be able to talk to his parents?
Brilliant, see also Me and My Brian, and Piano at the Station alongside The Boy who made everyone Laugh. Actually I've read them all apart from The Boy with Big Decisions and they are all fabulous!
Thanks to Poppy at Barrington Stoke for the advance copy, out today 12th February.
His best friends have discovered girls, and seem to think being with them is better than being with Vinny.
Dad isn't coming home everyday.
His brother is upset about something but isn't talking to him.
His mum is a life coach - she literally sorts other peoples problems out! But doesn't seem to have time to talk to Vinny.
He starts replying to messages on one of her old blogs - they messaged ages ago so she clearly didn't use it. He doesn't pretend to be her - he says the posts are from a '12 year old nobody' .
All is ok until he gets worried, then he gets found out. Is this the turning point? Will Vinny finally be able to talk to his parents?
Brilliant, see also Me and My Brian, and Piano at the Station alongside The Boy who made everyone Laugh. Actually I've read them all apart from The Boy with Big Decisions and they are all fabulous!
Thanks to Poppy at Barrington Stoke for the advance copy, out today 12th February.
January 31, 2026
This was properly heartfelt. Vinny’s got a lot of problems and he just wants to talk to his mum again. When it’s clear things are unravelling (his parents, his sister, his friendships), he steps into role of advice-giver. Vinny is a lush character and this is a lovely story.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews