What do you think?
Rate this book
Control Freaks
One week. One prize. Seven really weird challenges.
The kids at Benjamin Banneker College Prep are a little… competitive. Okay. They’re a LOT competitive.
The minute Principal Yee announces an epic competition for the golden B-B trophy, seventh-grader Frederick Douglass Zezzmer knows he has to win.
But it won’t be easy. The competition doesn’t just include science, technology, engineering and math. It also has arts and sports. Not Doug’s best subjects.
Even worse, it’s a TEAM competition. Instead of being in a superstar group, Doug gets paired with four middle school misfits no one else wants.
Worst of all, Doug’s dad has a horrible backup plan. If Doug doesn’t win, he has to forget about becoming The World’s Greatest Inventor and spend the summer in sports camp, with his scary stepbrother.
With only a week to go, Doug launches a quest to turn his team of outcasts into winners… and maybe even friends.
P R A I S E
★ "Thomas strews the increasingly suspenseful competition with teachable moments and traces learning curves not only for the students but for teachers and parents, too. Reminiscent of E. L. Konigsburg’s The View from Saturday. "
— Booklist (starred)
"Creative and hilarious...the novel’s narration shifts among many perspectives, giving a rich, panoramic view of how stressful yet ultimately rewarding these learning experiences are for the overachievers, the socially awkward, the kids with complicated home lives, and all those who just need to see each other a little differently."
— Kirkus
"...Witty competition drama... a telling that prioritizes characters’ interiority as well as their impact on each other’s lives. While Doug’s determined voice is the primary focus, the rotating narratives showcase each of the racially diverse characters’ individual stressors, delivering a well-rounded accounting that is better for its multiplicity."
— Publishers Weekly
The kids at Benjamin Banneker College Prep are a little… competitive. Okay. They’re a LOT competitive.
The minute Principal Yee announces an epic competition for the golden B-B trophy, seventh-grader Frederick Douglass Zezzmer knows he has to win.
But it won’t be easy. The competition doesn’t just include science, technology, engineering and math. It also has arts and sports. Not Doug’s best subjects.
Even worse, it’s a TEAM competition. Instead of being in a superstar group, Doug gets paired with four middle school misfits no one else wants.
Worst of all, Doug’s dad has a horrible backup plan. If Doug doesn’t win, he has to forget about becoming The World’s Greatest Inventor and spend the summer in sports camp, with his scary stepbrother.
With only a week to go, Doug launches a quest to turn his team of outcasts into winners… and maybe even friends.
P R A I S E
★ "Thomas strews the increasingly suspenseful competition with teachable moments and traces learning curves not only for the students but for teachers and parents, too. Reminiscent of E. L. Konigsburg’s The View from Saturday. "
— Booklist (starred)
"Creative and hilarious...the novel’s narration shifts among many perspectives, giving a rich, panoramic view of how stressful yet ultimately rewarding these learning experiences are for the overachievers, the socially awkward, the kids with complicated home lives, and all those who just need to see each other a little differently."
— Kirkus
"...Witty competition drama... a telling that prioritizes characters’ interiority as well as their impact on each other’s lives. While Doug’s determined voice is the primary focus, the rotating narratives showcase each of the racially diverse characters’ individual stressors, delivering a well-rounded accounting that is better for its multiplicity."
— Publishers Weekly
320 pages, Hardcover
Published June 13, 2023
34 people are currently reading
2340 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews
July 24, 2023
Whew! This book is packed with interesting characters, a myriad of “steps” in the two main families, parenting help groups and other items to keep straight, but once the setting and all those elements are named, the events and clearly defined chapter perspectives will line out everyone and everything definitively. Doug (Black) and Huey (Caucasian) are far and away the main characters, but supporting characters such as Moms, Julius, Pops, Padgett, T.W., Dr. Yee, the DOM, Mrs. Jalil, Travis, and Liam all have key roles with author J.E. Thomas developing them almost as thoroughly as the two primary protagonists. With such diversity in interests and family configurations among the characters, every middle grade reader is sure to find someone who mirrors them and plenty who allow a look through at window or even step through the sliding glass door of their lives. The five days of an in-school, multi-disciplinary competition provides a great background to see into the experiences of this varied cast and rapid paced action makes the right at 300 pages fly by. Libraries serving grades 5-8, looking to expand their representation and with a healthy budget should consider this one.
Thanks for the print arc, Levine Querido/Chronicle Books.
Thanks for the print arc, Levine Querido/Chronicle Books.
April 9, 2023
EARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Doug works as part of a team through a series of challenges that are part of a school wide competition, and it turns out to be a lot for him to learn about his team mates. Students will love this story told through several points of view as characters navigate their friendships and blended families.
Doug works as part of a team through a series of challenges that are part of a school wide competition, and it turns out to be a lot for him to learn about his team mates. Students will love this story told through several points of view as characters navigate their friendships and blended families.
March 20, 2023
I’m rounding up to 4.
Lots of POV’s that can drag a bit but the stories are interconnected and interesting. This has strong potential to be a cool universe with multiple books.
Lots of POV’s that can drag a bit but the stories are interconnected and interesting. This has strong potential to be a cool universe with multiple books.
November 2, 2025
A bit formulaic and oddly paced, but entertaining enough to keep me eagerly turning pages
December 17, 2023
I won’t mince words: I did not like Control Freaks.
A book that is all about how important it is to value other people should actually take pains to demonstrate how the students come to recognize that value. The kids in Doug’s group do not grow closer to one another yet the book ends by telling me they are now good friends when there is no evidence to support this claim.
One easy way of connecting a group of disparate individuals together is by sharing experiences to find common ground. That never happens. These characters don’t learn anything about one another to grow closer. There are pockets that crop up - Doug’s best friend Huey predates the competition and Padgett seems to connect with Travis - but Liam is left out in the cold entirely. The nature of groups is that the relationships are not always equally as strong between each person - that’s fine. But, the group should have a basic level of kinship. Again, Liam sticks out like a sore thumb. He doesn't even get a POV chapter (more on that later). Literally no one talks to him inside the group unless it’s necessary and no one alludes to speaking to him outside the group either.
The competition - STEAMS - was alright, but it seemed to lose steam as it progressed. The very first task was very good and written in a very engaging manner. Subsequent tasks felt phoned in up until the final one. I was nowhere near as invested because the writing did not reflect the intensity of the competition. Also, even though Dr. Yee made a point to specify that every person in the group had to contribute to the task, the structure of STEAMS made it impossible for them to verify that. Huey and Liam were completely inconsequential overall to the group dynamic. They functioned fine enough, but there were like three tasks where one or both did not contribute significantly. STEAMS should have either had less teams to start so that the three adults observing could have monitored better or it should have involved tasks that had specific segmented parts to assign to members.
Doug’s family drama was interesting, but the conclusion made my blood boil.
Doug’s deadbeat father has shown up after years of minimal contact - ie. sending money - and has been a plague on his life since. He was a famous NFL football player until an injury took him out. He flew to California for an ESPN job and essentially abandoned his family from there. Doug’s mother remarried when Doug was two. He finally has decided Doug needs him in his life and showed up apropos of nothing at Doug’s birthday. Worse than that, in spite of literally not saying a word to Doug or his mother in years, he thought he could get full custody of Doug and Doug would just be hunky-dory torn away from the only family he has ever known to live with three complete strangers (his father, his stepmom and his stepbrother). My opinion of this man is lower than low.
Over the course of the novel, the central conflict for Doug is that his father does not respect his interest in inventing or really any cerebral endeavors. His father has this ridiculous notion that the only path to success is athleticism. (I found this to be such an insulting, ignorant take when decades of Black people fought for years to break into other fields outside of ones based on physicality). Doug thinks that if he wins the school competition and gets picked to be the first middle schooler ever sent to represent the school at the illustrious Gadget Con, his father will finally see that sports aren’t his thing.
As mad as Doug’s father made me, I was fine most of the book because he was obviously wrong and I knew that the matter would be handled eventually. The problem is that it’s handled in a way that is incredibly unfair to Doug.
Doug’s stepbrother TW struggles with writing. He threatened Doug to make him write a previous paper for him. He now needs him for another paper. Doug felt bad about the cheating and originally planned to say, no, but his father effectively forces his hand by making working on the paper a requirement for Doug to do. Through a series of mishaps, the wrong paper is sent in and the truth comes out. Doug’s father doesn’t tell the other adults in Doug’s life because his priority is making sure TW gets this paper in so he can continue to be on his football team. Instead he makes Doug come home with him, work on the paper in real time with TW and in spite of TW no longer needing Doug there to write the paper he tries to force him to sleepover and miss STEAMS the next day to finish it.
Doug calls his stepfather and that is nipped in the bud, thankfully, however, the whole cheating thing comes out. This is where the book sours irreparably.
Doug’s parents punish him for the cheating by grounding him and deciding even if he’s selected for Gadget Con he can’t go. I understand grounding him since regardless of intention he did do something he knew was wrong. But, taking Gadget Con away was beyond the pale.
As I established before, his father is an aggressive, stubborn person who flagrantly disrespects Doug’s agency often. I cannot stress enough how uncomfortable Doug was talking to him let alone standing up to him. Yet, his mother and stepfather decide that Doug deserves excessive punishment for feeling pressured and unable to tell them about what was going on. They really expect a twelve year old boy who has known his father less than a year to be able to decide the right thing to do in a complex conflict with him when the entire time that he’s known him Doug’s mother has pushed Doug to make peace with him. If this is the key to his fathers’ love then Doug is going to do it. Most kids would do anything to earn parental regard.
I thought it was wild that his father got to yell at Doug and basically kidnap him and refuse to engage in his interests only for Doug to be kept from something he earned for not being ‘strong’ enough to tell his parents about what was going on in the face of such overwhelming pressure.
His mother explicitly tells Doug that he and his father are a lot a like and they need to find a compromise. That’s utter hogwash. This man doesn’t know his son at all. Compromise is for people who have spent real time together. It is not for a man who has never interacted with his child ever. The first year he should only be doing what Doug wants, point blank period. Imposing his perspective - emphasis on imposing he is not just sharing - is alienating and selfish. Then again, what would I expect from a woman who agreed to follow a parenting plan that completely cut out her husband, i.e. the man who has actually been there every day of her child's life.
It’d be one thing if his father thought that Doug didn’t get enough exercise or something. But, he doesn’t just want Doug to play a sport to be more well-rounded: he wants him to play because he can’t fathom Doug being good at something that he has no knowledge of. Instead of acknowledging he feels out of his depth he decides to bulldoze over Doug’s needs to soothe his own ego and guilt for deserting him. I despised this man. As a result, any decision that in any way catered to him put me against Doug’s mother. It felt like she threw Doug to the wolves out of a misguided belief that Doug ‘should’ know his biological father.
From where I’m standing, Doug’s father should have been proving why Doug should give him a chance at knowing him. Rather than box Doug into a problematic relationship purely on the basis of blood, his mother should have been more receptive to Doug's grievances and potentially supervised more of their interactions. Again, his stepfather was a fantastic father to Doug - something Doug directly tells his father - and he’s not blood. So why should Doug have to cater to a relationship that is so one-sided when has a man in his life who has always wanted to be his dad? Family is what you make of it. If Doug’s father isn’t going to try to understand his child as he is, not as an extension of himself, then what good is the relationship to Doug anyway? There were so many times that I did not understand why his mother was not stepping in more or defending Doug’s choices. For all intents and purposes this is a stranger.
The only reason that Gadget Con is taken away is to highlight Doug no longer caring about his goals as much as he cares about his team. Doug does his best in spite of not being able to go to Gadget Con if they win. I just think it would have been better for the narrative if Dr. Yee had decided for his own reasons that Doug was not going to Gadget Con and Doug found that out early. It achieves the same goal without the subpar parenting.
Going back again to the subpar parenting, Doug’s father is also overbearing to TW as well and that is never addressed. Doug gets his moment in the sun to stand up to his father. TW does not get the same. He wants to transfer to Doug’s school because he’s interested in their science fiction courses. Of course, he knows that Doug’s dad will never support that so he stresses himself out trying to apply alone and avoid getting essential educational help because he can’t risk him finding out what he’s trying to do. The book has this kind of last minute epilogue sequence that reveals TW got into Benjamin Banneker so we just have to assume that Doug’s conversation sparked another.
The book is multi POV to its detriment. It felt like a cheap way to sprinkle in background knowledge not an exploration of various characters' perspectives. Example, we find out Travis’ mother died of COVID in her POV chapter, but Travis never tells anyone on the page about this. It’s a way to make us as the reader sympathetic to her quirks except it does nothing for the story because, like I mentioned before, the kids are barely friends. This could have been used as a character building moment for Doug and Huey (they have family drama but at least they still have their mothers) or a friendship bonding moment for the group (thank you for sharing this personal matter with us Travis). Instead, a key factor of Travis’ backstory is treated like a preference for wheat bread over white.
I also hate when multiple point of view books don’t have a balanced distribution of chapters for each character. It makes it feel even more unnecessary. I went through, counted and divvied it up for reference:
Doug - 18
Huey - 5
TW - 4
Padgett - 3
Mrs. Jalil - 3
Travis - 2
Dr. Yee - 2
Julius - 1
The DOM - 1
It is clear from the chapter count alone that this is really Doug’s story not an ensemble. Not to mention the fact that Padgett, Mrs. Jalil, Dr. Yee, and Travis’ chapters function primarily as check-ins on things that Thomas did not seem to want to explore in the mainline of the narrative and don’t really move anything along meaningfully.
Mrs. Jalil is in charge of the community service project that the losing teams have to do when they fail out of STEAMS. We do not have to see firsthand what those kids are doing. A throwaway line by Huey informing Doug of what he’s heard would suffice. Her and Dr. Yee’s last chapters are literally email epilogues. The DOM is not even a character. She’s Dr. Yee’s best friend who agreed to be the judge. Before her POV chapter she appeared for 10 pages in Chapter 12. In those 10 pages she spoke only a handful of times to judge team names then disappeared from the book. Why does she need a chapter at all? She is a random woman at this point.
Debut novels can be very hit or miss so this is not a permanent condemnation of J.E. Thomas as a writer. This book had good bones, the execution was simply lacking. If you could not guess by my opening line: no, I would not recommend Control Freaks.
A book that is all about how important it is to value other people should actually take pains to demonstrate how the students come to recognize that value. The kids in Doug’s group do not grow closer to one another yet the book ends by telling me they are now good friends when there is no evidence to support this claim.
One easy way of connecting a group of disparate individuals together is by sharing experiences to find common ground. That never happens. These characters don’t learn anything about one another to grow closer. There are pockets that crop up - Doug’s best friend Huey predates the competition and Padgett seems to connect with Travis - but Liam is left out in the cold entirely. The nature of groups is that the relationships are not always equally as strong between each person - that’s fine. But, the group should have a basic level of kinship. Again, Liam sticks out like a sore thumb. He doesn't even get a POV chapter (more on that later). Literally no one talks to him inside the group unless it’s necessary and no one alludes to speaking to him outside the group either.
The competition - STEAMS - was alright, but it seemed to lose steam as it progressed. The very first task was very good and written in a very engaging manner. Subsequent tasks felt phoned in up until the final one. I was nowhere near as invested because the writing did not reflect the intensity of the competition. Also, even though Dr. Yee made a point to specify that every person in the group had to contribute to the task, the structure of STEAMS made it impossible for them to verify that. Huey and Liam were completely inconsequential overall to the group dynamic. They functioned fine enough, but there were like three tasks where one or both did not contribute significantly. STEAMS should have either had less teams to start so that the three adults observing could have monitored better or it should have involved tasks that had specific segmented parts to assign to members.
Doug’s family drama was interesting, but the conclusion made my blood boil.
Doug’s deadbeat father has shown up after years of minimal contact - ie. sending money - and has been a plague on his life since. He was a famous NFL football player until an injury took him out. He flew to California for an ESPN job and essentially abandoned his family from there. Doug’s mother remarried when Doug was two. He finally has decided Doug needs him in his life and showed up apropos of nothing at Doug’s birthday. Worse than that, in spite of literally not saying a word to Doug or his mother in years, he thought he could get full custody of Doug and Doug would just be hunky-dory torn away from the only family he has ever known to live with three complete strangers (his father, his stepmom and his stepbrother). My opinion of this man is lower than low.
Over the course of the novel, the central conflict for Doug is that his father does not respect his interest in inventing or really any cerebral endeavors. His father has this ridiculous notion that the only path to success is athleticism. (I found this to be such an insulting, ignorant take when decades of Black people fought for years to break into other fields outside of ones based on physicality). Doug thinks that if he wins the school competition and gets picked to be the first middle schooler ever sent to represent the school at the illustrious Gadget Con, his father will finally see that sports aren’t his thing.
As mad as Doug’s father made me, I was fine most of the book because he was obviously wrong and I knew that the matter would be handled eventually. The problem is that it’s handled in a way that is incredibly unfair to Doug.
Doug’s stepbrother TW struggles with writing. He threatened Doug to make him write a previous paper for him. He now needs him for another paper. Doug felt bad about the cheating and originally planned to say, no, but his father effectively forces his hand by making working on the paper a requirement for Doug to do. Through a series of mishaps, the wrong paper is sent in and the truth comes out. Doug’s father doesn’t tell the other adults in Doug’s life because his priority is making sure TW gets this paper in so he can continue to be on his football team. Instead he makes Doug come home with him, work on the paper in real time with TW and in spite of TW no longer needing Doug there to write the paper he tries to force him to sleepover and miss STEAMS the next day to finish it.
Doug calls his stepfather and that is nipped in the bud, thankfully, however, the whole cheating thing comes out. This is where the book sours irreparably.
Doug’s parents punish him for the cheating by grounding him and deciding even if he’s selected for Gadget Con he can’t go. I understand grounding him since regardless of intention he did do something he knew was wrong. But, taking Gadget Con away was beyond the pale.
As I established before, his father is an aggressive, stubborn person who flagrantly disrespects Doug’s agency often. I cannot stress enough how uncomfortable Doug was talking to him let alone standing up to him. Yet, his mother and stepfather decide that Doug deserves excessive punishment for feeling pressured and unable to tell them about what was going on. They really expect a twelve year old boy who has known his father less than a year to be able to decide the right thing to do in a complex conflict with him when the entire time that he’s known him Doug’s mother has pushed Doug to make peace with him. If this is the key to his fathers’ love then Doug is going to do it. Most kids would do anything to earn parental regard.
I thought it was wild that his father got to yell at Doug and basically kidnap him and refuse to engage in his interests only for Doug to be kept from something he earned for not being ‘strong’ enough to tell his parents about what was going on in the face of such overwhelming pressure.
His mother explicitly tells Doug that he and his father are a lot a like and they need to find a compromise. That’s utter hogwash. This man doesn’t know his son at all. Compromise is for people who have spent real time together. It is not for a man who has never interacted with his child ever. The first year he should only be doing what Doug wants, point blank period. Imposing his perspective - emphasis on imposing he is not just sharing - is alienating and selfish. Then again, what would I expect from a woman who agreed to follow a parenting plan that completely cut out her husband, i.e. the man who has actually been there every day of her child's life.
It’d be one thing if his father thought that Doug didn’t get enough exercise or something. But, he doesn’t just want Doug to play a sport to be more well-rounded: he wants him to play because he can’t fathom Doug being good at something that he has no knowledge of. Instead of acknowledging he feels out of his depth he decides to bulldoze over Doug’s needs to soothe his own ego and guilt for deserting him. I despised this man. As a result, any decision that in any way catered to him put me against Doug’s mother. It felt like she threw Doug to the wolves out of a misguided belief that Doug ‘should’ know his biological father.
From where I’m standing, Doug’s father should have been proving why Doug should give him a chance at knowing him. Rather than box Doug into a problematic relationship purely on the basis of blood, his mother should have been more receptive to Doug's grievances and potentially supervised more of their interactions. Again, his stepfather was a fantastic father to Doug - something Doug directly tells his father - and he’s not blood. So why should Doug have to cater to a relationship that is so one-sided when has a man in his life who has always wanted to be his dad? Family is what you make of it. If Doug’s father isn’t going to try to understand his child as he is, not as an extension of himself, then what good is the relationship to Doug anyway? There were so many times that I did not understand why his mother was not stepping in more or defending Doug’s choices. For all intents and purposes this is a stranger.
The only reason that Gadget Con is taken away is to highlight Doug no longer caring about his goals as much as he cares about his team. Doug does his best in spite of not being able to go to Gadget Con if they win. I just think it would have been better for the narrative if Dr. Yee had decided for his own reasons that Doug was not going to Gadget Con and Doug found that out early. It achieves the same goal without the subpar parenting.
Going back again to the subpar parenting, Doug’s father is also overbearing to TW as well and that is never addressed. Doug gets his moment in the sun to stand up to his father. TW does not get the same. He wants to transfer to Doug’s school because he’s interested in their science fiction courses. Of course, he knows that Doug’s dad will never support that so he stresses himself out trying to apply alone and avoid getting essential educational help because he can’t risk him finding out what he’s trying to do. The book has this kind of last minute epilogue sequence that reveals TW got into Benjamin Banneker so we just have to assume that Doug’s conversation sparked another.
The book is multi POV to its detriment. It felt like a cheap way to sprinkle in background knowledge not an exploration of various characters' perspectives. Example, we find out Travis’ mother died of COVID in her POV chapter, but Travis never tells anyone on the page about this. It’s a way to make us as the reader sympathetic to her quirks except it does nothing for the story because, like I mentioned before, the kids are barely friends. This could have been used as a character building moment for Doug and Huey (they have family drama but at least they still have their mothers) or a friendship bonding moment for the group (thank you for sharing this personal matter with us Travis). Instead, a key factor of Travis’ backstory is treated like a preference for wheat bread over white.
I also hate when multiple point of view books don’t have a balanced distribution of chapters for each character. It makes it feel even more unnecessary. I went through, counted and divvied it up for reference:
Doug - 18
Huey - 5
TW - 4
Padgett - 3
Mrs. Jalil - 3
Travis - 2
Dr. Yee - 2
Julius - 1
The DOM - 1
It is clear from the chapter count alone that this is really Doug’s story not an ensemble. Not to mention the fact that Padgett, Mrs. Jalil, Dr. Yee, and Travis’ chapters function primarily as check-ins on things that Thomas did not seem to want to explore in the mainline of the narrative and don’t really move anything along meaningfully.
Mrs. Jalil is in charge of the community service project that the losing teams have to do when they fail out of STEAMS. We do not have to see firsthand what those kids are doing. A throwaway line by Huey informing Doug of what he’s heard would suffice. Her and Dr. Yee’s last chapters are literally email epilogues. The DOM is not even a character. She’s Dr. Yee’s best friend who agreed to be the judge. Before her POV chapter she appeared for 10 pages in Chapter 12. In those 10 pages she spoke only a handful of times to judge team names then disappeared from the book. Why does she need a chapter at all? She is a random woman at this point.
Debut novels can be very hit or miss so this is not a permanent condemnation of J.E. Thomas as a writer. This book had good bones, the execution was simply lacking. If you could not guess by my opening line: no, I would not recommend Control Freaks.
December 7, 2024
“Sometimes, being good humans is all we can do.”
I'd like to thank Angela Melamud PR for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
I've also posted this review on Instagram and my blog.
Instagram Post
Blog Post
Content Warnings: grief, death of a parent (past)
This book was filled with an interesting cast of characters! At first, it took some time to keep them all straight, but once that was established, it was smooth sailing. The STEAMS competition was fun to read about, and each challenge brought together science and creativity. I enjoyed how each character developed and grew as they progressed throughout the competition. However, I would have liked more time to get to know each of the side characters, as there were a lot of them. There was a wide array of family dynamics as well, which was great to see. I’d recommend this to fans of younger middle-grade books who enjoy competitions!
I'd like to thank Angela Melamud PR for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
I've also posted this review on Instagram and my blog.
Instagram Post
Blog Post
Content Warnings: grief, death of a parent (past)
This book was filled with an interesting cast of characters! At first, it took some time to keep them all straight, but once that was established, it was smooth sailing. The STEAMS competition was fun to read about, and each challenge brought together science and creativity. I enjoyed how each character developed and grew as they progressed throughout the competition. However, I would have liked more time to get to know each of the side characters, as there were a lot of them. There was a wide array of family dynamics as well, which was great to see. I’d recommend this to fans of younger middle-grade books who enjoy competitions!
July 9, 2024
Kid lit- As an adult reader, I enjoyed the Colorado references. For the target audience, I think middle grade readers will enjoy all the different POVs and will be able to find one to connect to. It was fun imagining all the challenges they kids needed to solve and seeing parents struggling to connect to kids. My favorite part was seeing the truth behind the middle school rumors.
February 7, 2025
One week. One prize. Seven really weird challenges.
The students at Benjamin Banneker College Prep take competition seriously—maybe too seriously. When Principal Yee announces a school-wide contest for the golden B-B trophy, seventh-grader Frederick Douglass Zezzmer is determined to win. But there’s one big problem: the contest isn’t just about science and engineering (Doug’s strengths). It also includes arts and sports (his weaknesses).
Even worse, the competition is a team event, and Doug gets stuck with a group of so-called misfits—students no one else wanted. As if that’s not bad enough, his dad has made it clear: if Doug doesn’t win, he’ll have to spend the summer at sports camp with his intimidating stepbrother instead of pursuing his dream of becoming The World’s Greatest Inventor.
What follows is a fast-paced, funny, and heartfelt adventure as Doug tries to turn his ragtag team into champions. Along the way, he learns that winning isn’t just about being the best—it’s about teamwork, friendship, and discovering strengths in unexpected places.
Amy Parks delivers a relatable and entertaining middle-grade novel filled with humor, heart, and STEM fun. Doug’s journey is perfect for readers who enjoy competition stories, underdog victories, and quirky characters. The book cleverly balances humor with important themes of resilience, teamwork, and self-acceptance.
Verdict: A must-read for middle-grade fans of competition stories like The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl or The Smartest Kid in the Universe. Doug’s misadventures, combined with Parks’ engaging writing, make this a delightful and inspiring read.
The students at Benjamin Banneker College Prep take competition seriously—maybe too seriously. When Principal Yee announces a school-wide contest for the golden B-B trophy, seventh-grader Frederick Douglass Zezzmer is determined to win. But there’s one big problem: the contest isn’t just about science and engineering (Doug’s strengths). It also includes arts and sports (his weaknesses).
Even worse, the competition is a team event, and Doug gets stuck with a group of so-called misfits—students no one else wanted. As if that’s not bad enough, his dad has made it clear: if Doug doesn’t win, he’ll have to spend the summer at sports camp with his intimidating stepbrother instead of pursuing his dream of becoming The World’s Greatest Inventor.
What follows is a fast-paced, funny, and heartfelt adventure as Doug tries to turn his ragtag team into champions. Along the way, he learns that winning isn’t just about being the best—it’s about teamwork, friendship, and discovering strengths in unexpected places.
Amy Parks delivers a relatable and entertaining middle-grade novel filled with humor, heart, and STEM fun. Doug’s journey is perfect for readers who enjoy competition stories, underdog victories, and quirky characters. The book cleverly balances humor with important themes of resilience, teamwork, and self-acceptance.
Verdict: A must-read for middle-grade fans of competition stories like The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl or The Smartest Kid in the Universe. Doug’s misadventures, combined with Parks’ engaging writing, make this a delightful and inspiring read.
May 31, 2023
I was unsure going into this book what to expect. It seemed like an interesting story but I was uncertain where the author was going with it. But I was rather amazed by how much I truly loved this story! The characters felt so real to me and they all were likeable. I also loved the overall theme of working together and believing in yourself, at least that's what I took from it.
It was such a cozy, feel good fun middle grade contemporary read. I was pleasantly surprised by how everything was wrapped up in the end. Characters that I couldn't stand throughout the whole story ended up being ones that I especially loved at the end. The author did an amazing job with this story and I can't wait for more! If you love strong competitive spirits and embracing team work, then this book is for you!
*I received a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
It was such a cozy, feel good fun middle grade contemporary read. I was pleasantly surprised by how everything was wrapped up in the end. Characters that I couldn't stand throughout the whole story ended up being ones that I especially loved at the end. The author did an amazing job with this story and I can't wait for more! If you love strong competitive spirits and embracing team work, then this book is for you!
*I received a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
never-finished
June 20, 2023I thought this sounded interesting, but I got so confused by the plethora of characters and viewpoints and I didn't really connect with any of the characters, so I gave up. Thanks to Libro.FM for a free educator copy of the audiobook.
June 10, 2024
Competition fever shifts into overdrive with plenty of drama and learning to work together thrown in.
Doug is determined to become the greatest inventor ever, but his biological father sees sports in the future, instead. When the principal announces an intense, science competition with a special prize, Doug knows this is his chance to shoot for his dreams and shove that sport idea to the sidelines. But there's a hitch—isn't there always? It's a team competition, and Doug isn't anything but happy to work with others, especially when he realizes who he'll be working with. It was already going to be tough to prove himself, but now, it might just be impossible.
Science fair competition heads right into drama as these pages take on more than a few more serious issues, while embracing STEAM and the very competitive spirit. By allowing the chapters to switch between various characters' points of view, the reader gets to see the different challenges each person is facing and what is driving them to do what they do. It adds quite a bit of depth and more than a few subplots to weave with wit and heart under the main plot surrounding Doug's own goals and problems. Each of these hits upon themes, which middle graders can identify with (divorce, family health issues, pressures at home, etc), and each one comes across naturally. While all of this simmers along, the science fair madness (because this competition goes way beyond basic science fair) brings in STEAM goodness with technology, math, arts, and more. So much more.
Despite everything going on, the story runs smoothly and doesn't grow confusing. Each chapter begins with the character's name as well as a small symbol to represent them, so it's clear who is telling the story. Each one has their own voice, and their personalities come across nicely. This also helps get a good handle on that chaos surrounding the competition competitiveness. This is where the action sits...and it's not to be underestimated. It was fun to see the tension build as problems arose (emotional as well as practical), and there's enough snark and humor built in to add spice. The pacing rolls along with only a few slower areas here and there. There are more than a few details surrounding the science, which is wonderful but does go in deeper than some readers might enjoy. Those, who thrive in this direction, will appreciate this aspect, though.
This is a well-woven read, which incorporates diversity, science, and life issues with natural spark. Fans of science fair tension are especially going to want to take a peek at this one. I received an ARC and found the story weave well done.
Doug is determined to become the greatest inventor ever, but his biological father sees sports in the future, instead. When the principal announces an intense, science competition with a special prize, Doug knows this is his chance to shoot for his dreams and shove that sport idea to the sidelines. But there's a hitch—isn't there always? It's a team competition, and Doug isn't anything but happy to work with others, especially when he realizes who he'll be working with. It was already going to be tough to prove himself, but now, it might just be impossible.
Science fair competition heads right into drama as these pages take on more than a few more serious issues, while embracing STEAM and the very competitive spirit. By allowing the chapters to switch between various characters' points of view, the reader gets to see the different challenges each person is facing and what is driving them to do what they do. It adds quite a bit of depth and more than a few subplots to weave with wit and heart under the main plot surrounding Doug's own goals and problems. Each of these hits upon themes, which middle graders can identify with (divorce, family health issues, pressures at home, etc), and each one comes across naturally. While all of this simmers along, the science fair madness (because this competition goes way beyond basic science fair) brings in STEAM goodness with technology, math, arts, and more. So much more.
Despite everything going on, the story runs smoothly and doesn't grow confusing. Each chapter begins with the character's name as well as a small symbol to represent them, so it's clear who is telling the story. Each one has their own voice, and their personalities come across nicely. This also helps get a good handle on that chaos surrounding the competition competitiveness. This is where the action sits...and it's not to be underestimated. It was fun to see the tension build as problems arose (emotional as well as practical), and there's enough snark and humor built in to add spice. The pacing rolls along with only a few slower areas here and there. There are more than a few details surrounding the science, which is wonderful but does go in deeper than some readers might enjoy. Those, who thrive in this direction, will appreciate this aspect, though.
This is a well-woven read, which incorporates diversity, science, and life issues with natural spark. Fans of science fair tension are especially going to want to take a peek at this one. I received an ARC and found the story weave well done.
April 29, 2023
Welcome to Benjamin Banneker College Perp Middle School STEAMS (science, technology, engineering, art, math, and sports) competition, Douglas Zezzmer wants to prove his invention schools to his principal, but didn't expect his team, TravLiUeyPadgeyZezzm, to not only push forward in the competition, but to become a true team and friends. While dealing with the competition, Doug has to tutor his stepbrother, TW, and try to convince his father, former Denver Broncho, Elliot, that his track lines with inventing, not sports. The narrative is hilarious and digs deep into each character as the perspectives jump from mostly Doug to other members of his team, other students, his step brother, his teachers, and even his parents and step parents. Each character is unique and their perspectives help highlight some of the true complexities of middle school, especially for intelligent, talented, and socially awkward overachievers while trying to navigate the stress and demands of their families. The cast is diverse, not only racially, but in their drives and talents. This book brings all aspects of the STEAMS premise and competition into the forefront while not losing the feel of middle school and family drama. Well worth the read for children who enjoy different genres and hobbies.
August 18, 2024
This is a really fun middle-grade grade story that felt like a fairy tale version of my worst nightmare! It made me wish I went to this school when I was that age.
Doug is struggling to balance his relationship with his Pop who has recently come back around after being in Pro Sports, with his mom and (step)dad. Then the Principal announces an epic competition...a TEAM competition. And even worse, it will include not just the STEM aspects, but art and sports too! The team Doug finds himself on has one of his buddies, but is not all he hoped! This team has to come together or fail, and none of them are willing to let that happen.
I loved following all the perspectives of the students, even though Doug was the primary character. This was a diverse group of kids with diverse skills and home lives who found a comradery that transcended their differences. It was a delight to journey with them all and to see how this one challenge empowered Doug outside of school as well!
For a fantastic middle grade story, please take a look at this great story that left me cheering!
Thank you to @angelabookspr & @jethomasauthor for sharing this book with me!
Doug is struggling to balance his relationship with his Pop who has recently come back around after being in Pro Sports, with his mom and (step)dad. Then the Principal announces an epic competition...a TEAM competition. And even worse, it will include not just the STEM aspects, but art and sports too! The team Doug finds himself on has one of his buddies, but is not all he hoped! This team has to come together or fail, and none of them are willing to let that happen.
I loved following all the perspectives of the students, even though Doug was the primary character. This was a diverse group of kids with diverse skills and home lives who found a comradery that transcended their differences. It was a delight to journey with them all and to see how this one challenge empowered Doug outside of school as well!
For a fantastic middle grade story, please take a look at this great story that left me cheering!
Thank you to @angelabookspr & @jethomasauthor for sharing this book with me!
March 9, 2023
Control Freaks was a fun ride through an elite middle school where a STEAMS challenge is mixing things up and pushing the students to learn not just to think outside the box, but to work with others.
Doug is desperate to win the competition to secure a spot at GadgetCon which is a big step towards becoming the greatest inventor of all time! His best friend Huey just wants to get through the competition without having to take center stage.
The activities and elimination rounds are fun and really drive the story along, but beyond the competition, there is an important story of what it means to be a parent, and how to communicate as a family. Both Doug and Huey are part of blended families, and their different experiences and circumstances really highlight what makes a family and how key it is to communicate about the important things.
A fun read with so much goodness to take away from the story!
Doug is desperate to win the competition to secure a spot at GadgetCon which is a big step towards becoming the greatest inventor of all time! His best friend Huey just wants to get through the competition without having to take center stage.
The activities and elimination rounds are fun and really drive the story along, but beyond the competition, there is an important story of what it means to be a parent, and how to communicate as a family. Both Doug and Huey are part of blended families, and their different experiences and circumstances really highlight what makes a family and how key it is to communicate about the important things.
A fun read with so much goodness to take away from the story!
April 21, 2024
It took me a little while to get into this book. The initial concept of a school full of hyper-competitive kids had me cringing, and I couldn't imagine ever wanting to send my kids to a school like that. I could see what was coming with the group challenge, though, so I gave it a chance and thought perhaps it could show young readers who have the same competitive streak that working together is not a bad thing.
Overall the story was good. The characters were believable, though the chapters told from various characters' point of view were slightly distracting. While it was nice to see other points of view, by seeing just a glimpse, I was left wanting more and feeling that those characters could have been more fleshed-out. The underlying message was clear and positive, and hopefully young readers will take something away from it. I was able to picture the settings, and the action-packed language can help keep kids interested and invested in the story.
Overall the story was good. The characters were believable, though the chapters told from various characters' point of view were slightly distracting. While it was nice to see other points of view, by seeing just a glimpse, I was left wanting more and feeling that those characters could have been more fleshed-out. The underlying message was clear and positive, and hopefully young readers will take something away from it. I was able to picture the settings, and the action-packed language can help keep kids interested and invested in the story.
June 12, 2024
Seventh grader, Doug, lives with his mom, stepdad and stepdad's adopted son, TW. Dad and TW are jocks and Doug is a nerd. Dad wants Doug to go to Elite Juniors Sports Camp for the summer. It is run by former pro athletes. Doug doesn't want to go. His school is having a STEAM competition. If her can win, he can avoid the sports camp.
Doug's school principal announces the STEAM contest will involve 7th, 8th and 9th graders working together. Doug is unhappy because he won't stand out in this crowd. The contest includes sports and the arts, two things in which Doug does not excel. To boot, Doug gets paired with 4 middle school misfits.
The competition is tough and teams start dropping like flies. It comes down to two teams going into the final event - the arts. Doug's team is one of them. I don't want to reveal the ending, but it's a great lesson in being part of a team.
Doug's school principal announces the STEAM contest will involve 7th, 8th and 9th graders working together. Doug is unhappy because he won't stand out in this crowd. The contest includes sports and the arts, two things in which Doug does not excel. To boot, Doug gets paired with 4 middle school misfits.
The competition is tough and teams start dropping like flies. It comes down to two teams going into the final event - the arts. Doug's team is one of them. I don't want to reveal the ending, but it's a great lesson in being part of a team.
October 20, 2023
The kids at Doug's school are competitive over achievers. In the spring, their principal announces a competition involving unique challenges in science, technology, engineering arts, math, and sports. This is a team competition of 5 people with at least one from grade 6,7,8. Team work is not a strength for many at the school. That is one of the parts that will be judged.
Doug is struggling with his birth, dad who has returned to town and wants to run Doug's life, even though he hasn't been around for at least 10 years. Doug is more comfortable with his step-father who has been there for most of Doug's life. Pops had an NFL career and is now running companies who support sports. He wants Doug to know how to train his body and win. Doug's goal is to become an inventor.
Written in a voice that drew me into each character's emotions in their personal challenges.
Doug is struggling with his birth, dad who has returned to town and wants to run Doug's life, even though he hasn't been around for at least 10 years. Doug is more comfortable with his step-father who has been there for most of Doug's life. Pops had an NFL career and is now running companies who support sports. He wants Doug to know how to train his body and win. Doug's goal is to become an inventor.
Written in a voice that drew me into each character's emotions in their personal challenges.
April 24, 2023
Multiple narrators tell the story of Frederick Douglass Zezzmer’s attempt to lead his middle school STEM+Arts+Sports team to victory and win the prize of a trip to Gadget.Con. Doug’s pro-football player dad has just come back into his life and wants to push Doug toward sports instead of Doug’s true passion, inventing. Teamwork isn’t the strong suit of Benjamin Banneker College Prep students and each member of the team struggles to put aside their individual goals and challenges. J.E. Thomas manages a large cast of characters well, especially integrating Doug’s mom, dad, step-dad and step-brother into the story. Doug’s apps and inventions (especially one that incorporates features of Chat GPT) will intrigue readers. EARC from Edelweiss.
October 22, 2023
Juvenile School Fiction. 7th Grader, Doug, loves science and desires to become an inventor. The principal, Dr. Yee, of his Middle School announces that there will be a STEAMS competition which all students will participate. Random groups of 5 students representing each grade 6-8. Science/Math/Technology students are excited for the competition except for the Arts and Sports parts. The Arts/Sports experts don’t look forward to Science, etc. Dr. Yee’s goal is to get students working together as a group. Will it work? The story is also about relationships in family and friends. When I started the story, I didn’t know if I would like it. But it all came together very nicely. Recommend for 5th-7th grade.
June 17, 2023
Doug has his future all planned out. He’s going to impress his middle school principal, be chosen to represent the school at GadgetCon, and launch his career as a world famous inventor.
But all this stuff keeps getting in the way of those plans. Like a father who’s popped back into his life and wants him to be all about sports. And a step brother who’s the worst. And now he has to do a team competition with the weirdest kids at school.
But Doug has a plan.
This was a really fun read. I loved the perspectives of all the kids AND the adults as it really fleshed out the story. I can’t wait to add this to my kid’s bookshelf.
But all this stuff keeps getting in the way of those plans. Like a father who’s popped back into his life and wants him to be all about sports. And a step brother who’s the worst. And now he has to do a team competition with the weirdest kids at school.
But Doug has a plan.
This was a really fun read. I loved the perspectives of all the kids AND the adults as it really fleshed out the story. I can’t wait to add this to my kid’s bookshelf.
Read
June 27, 2023This was a fun listen about a competitive STEM middle school with a diverse cast of characters. Principal Yee has initiated a weeklong 'STEAMS' competition by adding art and sports into the usual STEM subjects. Kids at Benjamin Banneker middle school are definitely not used to working together and they're especially not into working together outside their comfort zone cliques. Each of the main characters are working toward different goals and they often have some type of family or life complication going on in the background. Even some of the adults get in on the story telling action. A good story with some subtle (ish) lessons on how the real world works.
November 12, 2023
When people start down a path, they have a vision of where they will go, but life does not always work out how they expect. This was true both for the characters in this book and for me as a reader. Hearing the many different voices in this book and following each character on his or her journey was very engaging. I enjoyed seeing a single event from multiple perspectives, even when I didn't agree with the perspectives. It was a good reminder that people can focus on a task in different ways and for different reasons, but still reach the same point in the end, while not necessarily agreeing.
November 27, 2023
Although the author explains the parental relationships, I was confused for much too long about who Julius and Pops were and the sons' relationship to each of them. And to each other, for that matter. And their long names didn't help the situation any for me. I guess I was just confounded all around for the first several chapters until I figured out that we were shifting POV each chapter, and who everyone is. Once I finally got all that worked out, I liked the competition and all the characters (except Pops, who needs to be in much more trouble than he is by the end of the book!). A great story about smart kids and the value of challenging yourself.
January 14, 2024
What I Liked:
Many characters...students could find someone to relate to. The premise of the book was new - high achieving students who had problems sharing control.
What I Didn't Like:
Too many characters / perspectives. It was hard to become invested in any one character, and I therefore did not feel strongly about what might happen to Doug (main character) in the competition nor as a result of his family struggles. Story seemed to drag for me.
Book Promo:
4th-6th
Have students share their feelings on "group projects / grades." Use this to relate to the story of the STEAMS competition.
Many characters...students could find someone to relate to. The premise of the book was new - high achieving students who had problems sharing control.
What I Didn't Like:
Too many characters / perspectives. It was hard to become invested in any one character, and I therefore did not feel strongly about what might happen to Doug (main character) in the competition nor as a result of his family struggles. Story seemed to drag for me.
Book Promo:
4th-6th
Have students share their feelings on "group projects / grades." Use this to relate to the story of the STEAMS competition.
April 12, 2023
I thought this was an interesting story for middle school students. The author tells the story through different character’s point of view. The characters are middle school students, their teachers and parents. The school has a Steam competition that ends up with the students having to think outside the box and also develop relationships with other students as they work together to solve the problems. The author also deals with common family issues that many students are dealing with these days.
Thanks for the free book.
Thanks for the free book.
August 12, 2025
On the one hand — love the science forward Black kid, the strong blended families, the misfit team becoming friends and supporting each other, the wacky competition.
On the other hand — I didn’t love the characters and I’m not really sure why. I hated the very toxic competitiveness of the middle school (although that’s the point) and a lot of the book was smart/entitled people whining or laying down ultimatums, which I didn’t not enjoy. I did love Mrs. Khalil’s creative responses to bored kids and her community minded ideas.
On the other hand — I didn’t love the characters and I’m not really sure why. I hated the very toxic competitiveness of the middle school (although that’s the point) and a lot of the book was smart/entitled people whining or laying down ultimatums, which I didn’t not enjoy. I did love Mrs. Khalil’s creative responses to bored kids and her community minded ideas.
June 11, 2024
I really enjoyed this book for multiple reasons. One, I love books with competitions in them, they keep me reading. Two, I love books where there is some sort of injustice throughout the story that makes you want to say or do something, and finally at the end, it is resolved. When he stood up to his father at the end, I just felt so powerful inside. Overall, this is a really great book and perfect for long road trips.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 22, 2024
I think every middle schooler will enjoy this book because of the diverse group and each will find someone to relate to. This blends school and family drama into one.
An entitled school has a team competition and I liked how they showed how you need to be able to work together. The group didn't get along at first but the more they worked together the more they bonded. This was a great lesson in team work and getting along with others.
An entitled school has a team competition and I liked how they showed how you need to be able to work together. The group didn't get along at first but the more they worked together the more they bonded. This was a great lesson in team work and getting along with others.
August 1, 2023
Respect for a school employee writing about a school! At first the complex back stories of the middle schoolers were a bit much, but I got into it and enjoyed the different points of view, as well as the challenges and lessons of the competition. Good insights into parenting as well. It was generally fun and light.
August 18, 2023
Middle school STEAMS competition. Multiple grades on each team. Different POVs.
Two BFFs maneuver to be on the same team.
Doug’s father is a sport nut, Doug wants to be an inventor, he dislikes sports. His step-brother goes to a different school, plays sports, wants to be at Doug’s school,
Family issues, divorce and remarriage, friendship issues.
Two BFFs maneuver to be on the same team.
Doug’s father is a sport nut, Doug wants to be an inventor, he dislikes sports. His step-brother goes to a different school, plays sports, wants to be at Doug’s school,
Family issues, divorce and remarriage, friendship issues.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews