It Wasn't Me

by Dana Alison Levy

"Every reader will find some piece of themselves in Levy's sharp, humorous, and heartfelt novel. A twisty mystery with quirky, unforgettable characters and a positive message to boot."—JOHN DAVID ANDERSON, the critically acclaimed author of Ms. Bixby’s Last Day and PostedThe Breakfast Club meets middle school with a prank twist in this hilarious and heartwarming story about six very different seventh graders who are forced to band together after a vandalism incident.When Theo's photography project is mysteriously vandalized at school there are five suspected students who all say "it wasn't me." Theo just wants to forget about the humiliating incident but his favorite teacher is determined to get to the bottom of it and has the six of them come into school over vacation to talk. She calls it "Justice Circle." The six students—the Nerd, the Princess, the Jock, the Screw Up, the Weirdo, and the Nobody—think of it as detention. AKA their worst nightmare. That is until they realize they might get along after all, despite their differences. But what is everyone hiding and will school ever be the same?*PW Best Books *Winter Kids' Indie Next List * JLG selection * Three starred reviews"What at first seems like a novel solely about bullying becomes a story about six kids who find their way to true friendship and fierce loyalty, and why restorative justice is worth the time and effort it takes." —Publishers Weekly, starred review "A timely, introspective whodunit with a lot of heart." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review "Levy writes in an easy style with laugh-out-loud humor, offering characters that slowly reveal deeper complexity." —School Library Journal, starred review

Genres: Middle Grade, Mystery, Realistic Fiction, Young Adult, Contemporary, Friendship, Fiction

330 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 13, 2018

About the author

Dana Alison Levy was raised by pirates but escaped at a young age and went on to earn a degree in aeronautics and puppetry. Actually, that’s not true—she just likes to make things up. That’s why she always wanted to write books. She was born and raised in New England and studied English literature before going to graduate school for business. While there is value in all learning, had she known she would end up writing for a living, she might not have struggled through all those statistics and finance classes. The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher is her first published novel, but she has a trunk full of other attempts, which vary in degrees of awfulness.
Her first book for young adults, Above All Else, comes out in October 2020. In addition to The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, she has also written The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island, This Would Make a Good Story, and It Wasn't me. All her books have garnered starred reviews, multiple Best Of lists and state reading lists, and are Junior Library Guild selections. Also her kids like them.

Reviews

[clara [inactive account] · Rating 4 out of 5]

...filing this under "pretty-vibin-middle-grade-books-i-thought-i-would-hate"....

yeah, i didn't think i would enjoy this. i thought i was gonna dnf it on page 3.



however, i did not. this book was actually vibing.

the first 30 pages, i found myself inwardly whining... (i mean i'm always inwardly whining about SOMETHING but)

me: tHe cHaRaCtErS aRe BoRiNg sTeReOtYpEs eWwW



cringing at my past self's state of mind (tounge twister of the day!) um anyways so-
i did originally HATE them characters. but then as the book progressed, i REALIZED what the author was trying to do and 🤦‍♀️BANGED MY HAND ON MY FACE 🤦‍♀️

i said "duh. i'm stoopid. This Book Is Actually Really Awesome, Big Brain.



tl;dr: me having the opposite of big brain moments now. BUT STILL VIBING. because this book was MuCh better than i expected. 🏆🏆

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

DISCLAIMER: I received a digital review copy of IT WASN’T ME via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

4.5 Stars

HOLY FREAKING COW

As mentioned in my RECKLESS CLUB review (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...), I love THE BREAKFAST CLUB, so when I heard about this book, I instantly requested it. And once I got the acceptance email, I was super excited and immediately started reading it.

Let me tell you, my friend, that I flippin’ loved it.

Like THE BREAKFAST CLUB, you have the classic Princess (Molly Claremont), Athlete (Erik Estrale), Brain (Andre Hall), Criminal (Jax Fletcher), and Basket Case (Alice Shu) - this time labeled as the Overachiever, the Jock, the Nerd, the Screw-up, and the Weirdo - and they do excellent justice to their similar counterparts. And the book is complete with some iconic quotes and scenes from the original BREAKFAST CLUB.

So, yeah, perfect for fans of THE BREAKFAST CLUB, or even people who want a nice, feel-good middle-grade novel.

Purchasing in November? Abso-freakin’-lutely

UPDATE: I have now read it twice, and it just made me love it more (also highly anticipating the audiobook)

[Shoshana · Rating 5 out of 5]

NEW DANA ALISON LEVY BOOK

Seriously, this showed up in the mail at work, I grabbed it, started it, finished it. All in the same day.

I won't say too much this far from pub date, but this is another win by Levy who, as usual, handles difficult issues with humor, charm, characters who are relateable and easy to become attached to (as well as coming off as full fleshed out), and a deft touch in general. This is definitely the "heaviest" of her books, facing issues of bullying, family difficulties, and general social issues a little more head-on, kind of in the style of John David Anderson or Rob Buyea - and arguably gets a little more "preachy" than her others, but it's also a kind of contemporary, middle school Breakfast Club which is pretty awesome. And I love that it's still in Shipton.

Can't wait for November to start selling this!

[Jensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was super excited to read this, as was my twelve-year-old, who has loved all of this author's previous books. It's a very different sort of story - school-based, rather than family-based - from her other books, but with the same humor, heart, and voice. The pitch of "Breakfast Club for MG" is DEAD-ON, so perfect, it made me want to go back and watch The Breakfast Club again. And in addition to the humor and wonderful characters, it brings up a lot of really important tough questions about the boxes we put each other into. I really hope this book does well and gets discussed in a lot of schools.

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fan's of Breakfast Club are going to enjoy this book. Steals quite a bit from the movie, but it's ok, I can handle that nod to a great film. I think middle schoolers through adult fans are going to enjoy this little mystery story Dana Levy nailed it!

I received a Kindle ARC from Netgalley in exchange for a fair review.

[Ary · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book was butt. it was like the breakfast club in middle school. THE MAIN CHARACTER DESERVED TO BE BULLIED 👹

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

It Wasn't Me by Dana Alison Levy will draw readers in with the nod to The Breakfast Club and keep them interested with the modern take on dealing with school labels. Like Theo I struggled wanting to know and not know what really happened to his vandalized artwork. Great book that will help readers to "Be kind, for all of us are fighting unseen battles."

[Katrina Tangen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I expected this to be much more of a mystery. There's a mystery element, but it's really a group therapy book. But an interesting twist on that (restorative justice circle) and the characters are fun (I love Alice!).

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: I read this as a free e-ARC from Netgalley. The description of this book is Breakfast Club middle school mystery and that is right on the mark. Six students are brought together during a school break to hopefully find out who has vandalized one of the student's (Theo) art work. Each of the other five affirms each day they were not involved, but all five admit to being in the area. They participate in an activity called a "justice circle." During the week, each of them realize something pivotal about themselves and each other. I really liked the mystery and their internal conflicts, but the author who readily admits The Breakfast Club is her favorite movie borrows too heavily for her story line. Each student is a stereotype, jock, nerd, art freak, etc. Even some of their antics are right out of the movie. If I had not also loved the movie, these things would not have bothered me. However, knowing the movie, it makes this author appear lazy in her creativity.

[Katie Reilley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Think The Breakfast Club meets middle school.

Theo’s self-portrait artwork has been vandalized, and he (along with 5 suspects) have to meet daily over winter break to talk about what happened.

Good book for MG readers as it addresses the assumptions and judgements they so often make and fall victim to at this age. Good information about Restorative Justice, too!

[Leonard Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Listened to audiobook. I am not sure I should have rated this lower than Harbor Me, since honestly I think I may have found it more engaging. I do think both books demonstrate the pitfalls of the Breakfast Club conceit and the artificial limits it places on the characters and plot (though maybe John David Anderson could take a crack at it.)

[Tessa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Look: basing each of your characters off of a stereotype doesn't make them a good or interesting character.

This was book was just a lot of mehhhhhh. Maybe I would appreciate it more if I'd ever seen The Breakfast Club. The only reason I finished it was because it was an audiobook and I didn't have my next audiobook yet.

[Wren · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5

The Breakfast club but middle grade and less stereotypical and sexist. (Don’t get me wrong I ADORE The Breakfast Club, but some aspects haven’t aged well)

I liked the plot of this and the whole time I just really wanted to know who was targeting Theo and why. Theo is a nice kid and some parts of his journey made me cry.

Even though this is based on stereotypes the characters felt very real. There are always layers to people. I am totally loving Alice, what a wonderful weirdo, I love her spirit. Also shoutout to my fellow metal head Andre, who makes my heart ache sometimes.

I appreciate what this book was trying to do. It was saying it’s okay to be whoever you are as long as you aren’t hurting anyone. It was saying how important honesty is but that it’s more important to understand how actions affect other people.

I’m not usually one for messages in books but I really enjoined this one and think it’s important for kids to read books like this.

[Amaya Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

A different twist to the breakfast club. Did not expect the ending, loved it!

[Julie Jaeger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laugh out loud funny. Yes, a deeper message too, but so funny!

[Anaum Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 because I rlly like this one

[Alexa Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still featuring one of the Fletcher boys—Jax—but told by Theo, whose photos have been vandalized multiple times. One of the teachers at the school decides to do justice circle over spring break to get to the bottom of it.

It starts slow, as we have to fully get into the story from six different points of view. Levy does a wonderful job of giving each of these characters a full story. That is the point, that they all learn that even if on the surface you are different, everyone can find something in common.

As an adult, I was able to see through one of the twists but the rest is very earnest, sweet and a little bit unpredictable. The slow start might make it a harder sell to kids, but they have also been in these situations. A nice conclusion, definitely with a message.

[Dest · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a quick read for me, but I think the ending was worth it. Here are some takeaways:

1. I think this succeeds in its attempt to reinterpret themes from The Breakfast Club for a younger audience. The point is to see past the labels we put on people. To know that everyone is fighting unseen battles. Kids from different cliques can and should get to know each other better.

2. I don't know much about restorative justice, so I can't speak to how well it was portrayed in the book. What I can say is that the concept slows down the book with didactic passages but ultimately enriches the story.

3. There are some big coincidences that make this pretty unsatisfying as a mystery. Obviously, the premise makes you want to read to the end to find out who really did it. But this book is way more about relationships than plot.

Overall, I might suggest this to middle schoolers looking for middle school drama with a social conscience.

[Kristin Crouch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Dana Alison Levy for providing an ARC to collabookation for review.
It Wasn't Me is a Breakfast Club WhoDunIt? And it's amazing.
Theo was asked and reluctantly agreed to hang some of his photography in the middle school’s art gallery. Soon after it is hung, it gets cruelly vandalized. Theo may have been able to deal with that, he knows the people he goes to school with, after all. Did he expect any different? But the following day, someone ruins a different piece of work he's set up...and now it's personal.
This book is the story of what happens when the five suspects and Theo all agree to spend their weeklong vacation taking part in a Justice Circle.
This book is fast-paced and so compelling. Turns out, when you spend several days stuck in a room with five other people, you get to know them. You definitely get past their middle school personas. It starts to get real in that Justice Circle. The entire time, I was simultaneously trying to figure out who did it while (for EVERY character) hoping that person didn't do it! Levy does a wonderful job of showing the reader the different exteriors and interiors for each and every character, and we understand them. I think we all can go back and shudder at who we were in middle school, or things we did. Levy perfectly displays these characters’ hopes and imperfections. Even better, Levy somehow highlights each character's introspection without getting too idealistic.
Kids will love this fast-paced and suspenseful read, as will adults. I think my fifths will miss a lot of the social aspects that are touched upon, but will still be thoroughly entertained. I picture my returning seventh and eighth graders being able to identify and connect with all the complex social issues of middle school, and for this reason I'll have two copies!
It Wasn’t Me will be published in November, but you can (and should) preorder now!

[Julie Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I didn't enjoy this because I'm an adult, but I think it may be enjoyed for a short time by my 6-7th graders. I think it may be even more appreciated by kids in Grades 4-5. At first, it reminded me of The Family Fletcher, and Boom! There was a Fletcher character, and I laughed and realized for the first time that this was the author of that book, too! Nice cameo!

The good:
-excellent, feel-good message (we are all more than we appear)
-if students read this and the author's note, they'll learn about restorative justice and its value, and they will compare this to "zero tolerance" and highly punitive methods of dealing with behavior.
--due to the above qualities, it would spark interesting and useful discussions.

The not so great:
--the slang will date this pretty quickly. I think some of it is outdated as of yesterday. ("lit," "rad", "dope," "obs")
--the blatant stereotyping. While that was the point, the fact that the characters are "the jock, the nerd, the weirdo, the victim" and the Molly Ringwald equivalent and they learn that they are more than that, I didn't like how stereotypical they actually were. The principal and guidance counselor were also stereotypes, and I don't think kids in 7th grade can perform stereotypical roles quite that well. I don't see 7th grade boys being that jocky yet, for example. I guess what I'm feeling is that they didn't feel like real kids in any way, either in their actions, passions, or language.
--the "mystery" was pretty easy to figure out really early on, making the solving of it seeming really unnecessary and drawn out.

It's possible that all of the negatives will fly right over my students' heads, and they could possibly love this. I like what Levy is doing with this book despite how I felt about it.

Update: my 6th and 7th grade Battle of the Books students all loved this—they had no complaints.

[Jenni Frencham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Levy, Dana Alison. It Wasn't Me. Delacorte Press, 2018.

Theo's photography project is vandalized, and no one saw anything. There are five students who were in the vicinity at the time, and they all claim they didn't do it. During a week of school break, the five students and Theo participate in a "justice circle" at school to discover who ruined Theo's work and why; during this time they learn more about each other than they do about the incident.

This book has been touted as a remake of The Breakfast Club, and that's a fairly accurate statement. The accused kids have all been labeled by Theo - the screw-up, the weirdo, the nerd, etc. - and through the justice circle he comes to care more for them than he does for the truth. Unfortunately, this story has the feel of an after-school special, and the focus on the characters rather than on action or plot will possibly bore tween readers. It's an interesting concept; however, this book seems to be aimed more at adults who remember watching The Breakfast Club or who are skeptical of the concept of a justice circle than at tweens who should be the intended audience. Read one of Levy's other books, such as the Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island, instead.

Recommended for: tweens
Red Flags: none
Overall Rating: 3/5 stars

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley for the purpose of review.

[Jan Raspen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was like reading the Breakfast Club if it were a book instead of a movie. The author doesn't hide the comparison (in her author's note at the end), and I guess certain ideas are timeless. I have long been interested in the idea of restorative justice, so I enjoyed seeing how the process changed the minds of all the characters.
Two criticisms I have are that the voices just didn't sound like middle schoolers. I listened to it, but I'm not talking about the narrators' voices. I mean, what the characters said just made them sound more like high school students.
Second, in the publisher's description of the book, the book is described as having a "prank twist." Unless I'm misunderstanding what that means, this does not happen. The author puts enough clues as we go along that the resolution is not surprising in any way.
This is a perfect middle school book...no bad language or inappropriate content. It makes us think about how others see us and how we see ourselves, but not in a heavy-handed way.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This had me hooked from the start! A teacher holds daily sessions with a group of middle schoolers in order to implement "restorative justice" in hopes that one of them will confess to a bullying incident and that they'll all be able to put this behind them. This would make a good follow-up suggestion for students who like Jackie Woodson's Harbor Me.

[Mikyla Meyer · Rating 1 out of 5]

The characters weren't authentically middle grade voices, and it really through off what would otherwise have been an enjoyable book. They weren't even sort of believable as middle graders. There was a weird disconnect/mismatch to everything because of that. I think the book could have shone better if it had been geared to an older audience.

[Lisa Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This book is everything. After Theo’s artwork is ruined at school, a counselor decides to use Restorative Justice. I loved how The Breakfast Club helped to inspire this novel. If you teach middle school, this book is a must.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid MS book that has a Breakfast Club vibe. I liked how i was wrong who vandalized the artwork and how you really got to know each character. Loved how the POV of the main character (a boy!) didn’t overtake the secondary characters stories or character development.

[Mary Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review forthcoming in School Library Journal!

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please see my review at Amazon.com under C. Wong. Thank you.

[Sophia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I never enjoyed dramas or realistic fiction, but I eventually gave this book a try, and I honestly regret reading it all the way through the end.
It seemed like an alright concept; somebody vandalizes one of the other middle schooler’s art piece, and they have a couple of suspects. Instead of all of them being expelled though, they are given a week to find out who did it.
At first, I was a little suspicious of how much it sounded more like a spy thriller or murder mystery but for kids than an actual drama, but oh boy was I wrong! (And not in a good way). At least a spy thriller would have had some plot, and (hopefully) not just be made up of pure filler and a hastily thrown together ending.
Honestly, you could’ve gotten the same entertainment value from a high school get-to-know-you/icebreaker first day. Heck, it would even have the same plot and theme!
The entire book is literally just a written down version of my middle school group meeting. It’s just all the characters begrudgingly doing therapy exercises and icebreaker activities together because they get candy/jolly ranchers if they do, with occasionally learning that, “hey! Look at the popular kid! She secretly has issues! Hey, look! The quiet kid plays in a rock and roll band! Hey, look! The seemingly nice theater kid that is hated on snapped at the main character! Maybe she did it!” It did manage to trick me though. I never managed to figure out who did it until the ending.
Speaking of the end, let’s talk about it.
(This is where the spoiler’s REALLY kick in. Quick summary: it’s kinda rushed and messy)
Turns out that 1. The jock’s friends did it and he didn’t know until the end, 2. The popular girl joined into vandalizing the art room because it felt good to destroy stuff, and 3. The theater kid had pencils and the stuff used to vandalize the art room thrown at them. (It’s on the very last day of the high school icebreaker wannabe as well.) Apparently the icebreakers were enough to get them all to admit it at the same time. My problem with this ending is 1. It’s very sudden, and feels like not much character development was taken to earn it, and 2. The way the main character and teacher reacts to this news is INSANELY inhuman. Instead of telling the principal (who is shown as a bad guy for thinking that the icebreaker won’t work. I get that it’s bad she wants to expel ALL suspects, but still. I don’t blame her for not having faith in the week-long icebreaker.) who did it, the instead take pictures with everybody else’s things, write down something cheesy like “don’t assume stuff about people” (having an anti-discrimination message is a good thing to include, but the way they pulled it off by just writing it down is just makes it feel like a children’s bedtime story.), before leaving the building, now becoming friends with everyone else!
Anybody else feels like it’s a little childish for a middle school chapter book, or is it just me?
2/5 stars, not very good. Don’t have much to say about it other than it was boring and had a childish ending for its grade level.

[Dilip Chauhan · Rating 4 out of 5]

When i started this book i had ZERO EXPECTATIONS . but what a book it was!!!
Solid 4 Star rating.
This book!! every parents should read it and ask the kids to read it. It's a simple but eyeopening book. which pinpoint's the Bullying, be it at school or at home or at anywhere.
So the story is Theo in who's point of view story has been told, becomes victim of school bullying, there are five kids at the scene: The Nerd, the Princess, the Jock, the Weirdo, and the Screw-Up. and all the 5 said same thing “It wasn’t me.”

but some one has seen something!! to make a confession one of the teacher (Th sweetest i have known) Ms. Lewiston starts an activity for a week known as Justice Circle which all the five accused and Victim has to attained and open up about the incident.

through the week all this six kids who thinks they know each other, will understand that they really have no idea about each others and will learn grate many other things.

The book has written in simple language,it's funny, it's up to the point.
the thing i like about the book is it will make us understand other human being much better.
may favorite line from the book is. Everyone is fighting a battle (or something like that!!)
at the end i will suggest everyone should read this amazing book, trust me it's own simple form this book will provide you the guide to many complex questions which we face in our daily life.