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Frogman's Response
Matthew Shaw is banned from his school's online counseling forum. Is it a crime his advice posts and anarchy blog are more popular than those on the school website?Though he's being as sincere as possible, Matthew, posting as "Frogman" online, wreaks havoc at Henry Blake High with advice that causes breakups, instigates a cheerleader fistfight, and turns a school assembly into an angry mob.When Matthew's private notebook goes missing, he worries not only about blowing his secret identity but about being suspended and ruining his shot to escape Mom's hoarding house.
- GenresYoung Adult
314 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 6, 2021
15 people want to read
About the author
Heidi Voss
10 books4 followersHeidi Voss’ debut novel Frogman’s Response has been praised as being “instantly engaging” and her award winning short fiction has been featured in multiple anthologies. When not writing or promoting her work, she enjoys exercise and video games.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 7, 2021
I’m filing this book under “kept reading it in the car while my husband pumped gas because I literally couldn’t stop.” Frogman's Response is instantly engaging, with a cast of realistic, flawed, and wholly likable teenagers that took me straight back to my own unsure high school days. Voss's unputdownable stories and sly humor have a way of pulling you firmly into the world she's created and making you want to keep reading forever. Highly recommended!
March 30, 2022
I loved this book! It's about a divided highschool and some kids who are caught up in the conflict. The characters are exciting and relatable. The experiences they have are a lot of fun to read with a good amount of humor thrown into the mix. I would definitely recommend!
January 22, 2022
Realistic, modern, nostalgic, relevant, relatable, tough, engaging
Frogman’s Response was a book that I didn’t think I would relate to quite as much as I did. I found myself identifying with Matthew constantly in a way that made me uncomfortable in a way that books don’t often elicit in me. I could see how my high school self would have made similar mistakes and reactions as Matthew and it made me confront where those feelings might have come from. Hoarding disorder is so common in the Midwest (which is actually where I grew up!) it’s almost hard to find a family that doesn’t have too many boxes somewhere. Though I never saw it on the same scale as Matthew, the emotions that Matthew feels are all too familiar to so many kids. This book is uncomfortably relatable in the best way that will make you nostalgic for high school and so glad you will never have to go back all at the same time.
Quick Summary: Matthew gets anonymously famous at his school after posting advice under the pseudonym Frogman on his school’s counseling website until the school bans him. Addicted to anonymously helping his classmates, he and his friends make a school blog and run it the way that they think it should be run. Little did they know that the well-intentioned advice would start to wreak havoc on the student body, but Frogman becomes the only way that Matthew feels in control of his life when living in his mom’s hoarding house. When Matthew’s private notebook gets stolen, Matthew worries that everything in his life will begin falling apart…
This book is engaging, realistic, and right on point. Regardless of if these teenager struggles are similar experiences to yours, you can’t help but see yourself somewhere in this high school. The energy, the aesthetic and the situations feel like the most realistic depiction of high school that I’ve read in so long. You can’t help but sympathize with Matthew and his friends. Frogman’s Response is a firm reminder that high school is hard and growing up is hard, which is something that we often forget as we get older and stop sympathizing with teens quite as much. Voss will put you right back in the shoes of these teenagers.
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Frogman’s Response was a book that I didn’t think I would relate to quite as much as I did. I found myself identifying with Matthew constantly in a way that made me uncomfortable in a way that books don’t often elicit in me. I could see how my high school self would have made similar mistakes and reactions as Matthew and it made me confront where those feelings might have come from. Hoarding disorder is so common in the Midwest (which is actually where I grew up!) it’s almost hard to find a family that doesn’t have too many boxes somewhere. Though I never saw it on the same scale as Matthew, the emotions that Matthew feels are all too familiar to so many kids. This book is uncomfortably relatable in the best way that will make you nostalgic for high school and so glad you will never have to go back all at the same time.
Quick Summary: Matthew gets anonymously famous at his school after posting advice under the pseudonym Frogman on his school’s counseling website until the school bans him. Addicted to anonymously helping his classmates, he and his friends make a school blog and run it the way that they think it should be run. Little did they know that the well-intentioned advice would start to wreak havoc on the student body, but Frogman becomes the only way that Matthew feels in control of his life when living in his mom’s hoarding house. When Matthew’s private notebook gets stolen, Matthew worries that everything in his life will begin falling apart…
This book is engaging, realistic, and right on point. Regardless of if these teenager struggles are similar experiences to yours, you can’t help but see yourself somewhere in this high school. The energy, the aesthetic and the situations feel like the most realistic depiction of high school that I’ve read in so long. You can’t help but sympathize with Matthew and his friends. Frogman’s Response is a firm reminder that high school is hard and growing up is hard, which is something that we often forget as we get older and stop sympathizing with teens quite as much. Voss will put you right back in the shoes of these teenagers.
Bookish Brews | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Facebook
September 19, 2023
Matthew Shaw’s ‘Frogman’ posts on the school’s online counseling forum are a massive part of his life. He loves playing such an influential role, and people seem to like his advice over that of the school counselor. So, when the school ban him, and any Frogman derivative name he comes up with, from the forum, he has to do something.
Teaming up with some unlikely friends, Matthew creates a blog, full of anarchy and publishes posts fighting against the school. He resurrects Frogman, and starts trying to recreate his infamy on his own site. But things don’t run quite as smoothly as he might have hoped. His words still influence people’s decisions and actions, but rather than simply encouraging students to follow their own desires, Matthew causes chaos. Breakups, fights, wide-spread anger throughout the school… it reaches a point where Matthew must decide whether it is still safe for Frogman to exist.
Matthew is a character in a very difficult situation. He lives for his Frogman posts because his life at home is not good. He lives alone with his mother, who is a hoarder and clutters their life with junk. Matthew hates going home to a house he can barely walk through, full of his mother’s mess, but he has no other choice. At least his room is clean. I really disliked Matthew’s mother in this book. Not only does she have no respect for him at all, or allow him many freedoms, she tries to blame things on him that are not his fault. The kitchen may be filthy, but none of the plates are Matthew’s, as he pretty much lives off granola bars due to his lack of money, and to avoid conversation with his mother over food, or if she cornered him while he was in the kitchen.
The school is portrayed as, in my opinion, quite a rough school. There are some people who treat it as if it were posh and believe that everyone must follow all the rules, but a fair amount of the pupils get into fights, and arguments in the classroom are to be expected and tolerated. There is a massive lack of funding for the school, and people fight to keep their clubs running when there is not necessarily the money for everyone. In another school, Matthew’s posts may have had a completely different effect, but in one where there is already tension, and ‘school spirit’ is ridiculous, as there is nothing about their school that the students can really brag about, he just adds to the disgruntlement amongst the student population.
This book felt quite real in the telling, as there are no magic fixes to anything. Matthew is behind on classwork, and he can’t just spend one evening on homework and catch up, it is a long haul of hard work he must commit to. His home life isn’t going to significantly improve after an argument where his mother suddenly sees his point of view and changes her ways. This book isn’t about Matthew going from a bad situation to a good one, but follows him through a small part of his life where he makes some mistakes at school, and has to deal with the consequences. He spends a lot of time worrying about school, as even though he doesn’t put much effort in, he is terrified that he won’t be able to get into college and escape home.
Although the chapters in this book are likely no shorter than any other book I’ve read recently, they felt quite short. This book is an incredibly easy read, and you can fly through the chapters. This did mean it was very easy to fall into the ‘just one more chapter’ scenario, as you can always justify reading another chapter if the chapters do not take long to read. I found myself sneaking in a quick chapter whenever I had the chance, and I read this book in no time at all. I loved reading this book, and looked forward to getting home from work to sit down and get back to reading it. If I had the time, I easily could’ve read this whole book in one sitting. It drew me in, and I didn’t want to put it down. I think this book would make a great teen film, and I’d love to see it on the screen. As an adult I loved reading it, and I know as a teen I would’ve loved it as well. It definitely suits it’s target audience, and was a great read!
Teaming up with some unlikely friends, Matthew creates a blog, full of anarchy and publishes posts fighting against the school. He resurrects Frogman, and starts trying to recreate his infamy on his own site. But things don’t run quite as smoothly as he might have hoped. His words still influence people’s decisions and actions, but rather than simply encouraging students to follow their own desires, Matthew causes chaos. Breakups, fights, wide-spread anger throughout the school… it reaches a point where Matthew must decide whether it is still safe for Frogman to exist.
Matthew is a character in a very difficult situation. He lives for his Frogman posts because his life at home is not good. He lives alone with his mother, who is a hoarder and clutters their life with junk. Matthew hates going home to a house he can barely walk through, full of his mother’s mess, but he has no other choice. At least his room is clean. I really disliked Matthew’s mother in this book. Not only does she have no respect for him at all, or allow him many freedoms, she tries to blame things on him that are not his fault. The kitchen may be filthy, but none of the plates are Matthew’s, as he pretty much lives off granola bars due to his lack of money, and to avoid conversation with his mother over food, or if she cornered him while he was in the kitchen.
The school is portrayed as, in my opinion, quite a rough school. There are some people who treat it as if it were posh and believe that everyone must follow all the rules, but a fair amount of the pupils get into fights, and arguments in the classroom are to be expected and tolerated. There is a massive lack of funding for the school, and people fight to keep their clubs running when there is not necessarily the money for everyone. In another school, Matthew’s posts may have had a completely different effect, but in one where there is already tension, and ‘school spirit’ is ridiculous, as there is nothing about their school that the students can really brag about, he just adds to the disgruntlement amongst the student population.
This book felt quite real in the telling, as there are no magic fixes to anything. Matthew is behind on classwork, and he can’t just spend one evening on homework and catch up, it is a long haul of hard work he must commit to. His home life isn’t going to significantly improve after an argument where his mother suddenly sees his point of view and changes her ways. This book isn’t about Matthew going from a bad situation to a good one, but follows him through a small part of his life where he makes some mistakes at school, and has to deal with the consequences. He spends a lot of time worrying about school, as even though he doesn’t put much effort in, he is terrified that he won’t be able to get into college and escape home.
Although the chapters in this book are likely no shorter than any other book I’ve read recently, they felt quite short. This book is an incredibly easy read, and you can fly through the chapters. This did mean it was very easy to fall into the ‘just one more chapter’ scenario, as you can always justify reading another chapter if the chapters do not take long to read. I found myself sneaking in a quick chapter whenever I had the chance, and I read this book in no time at all. I loved reading this book, and looked forward to getting home from work to sit down and get back to reading it. If I had the time, I easily could’ve read this whole book in one sitting. It drew me in, and I didn’t want to put it down. I think this book would make a great teen film, and I’d love to see it on the screen. As an adult I loved reading it, and I know as a teen I would’ve loved it as well. It definitely suits it’s target audience, and was a great read!
July 10, 2022
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https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/sh...
Matthew Shaw is an unintentional loner. He wants friends but friends mean inviting people to his house and his mom has made sure that he'll never do that. His mom is a hoarder and Matthew does everything he can to keep himself and his life in the house away from those outside the house.
After Matt's best friend moves out of state, Matt seeks solace in the idea of helping others. He contributes to the school's advice forum under the pseudonym of "Frogman". And while he thinks he may actually be helping, the school's counselor does not and ends up shutting down the forum. Now Matt has all this advice and nowhere to share it.
Matt enlists the help of the school anarchist and the girl who runs all the practical elements of the student body council. Together, they start their own blog and begin sharing ideas and advice with the students of Henry Blake High.
But not everyone likes Matt's advice. Some take it far too literally. Others get caught in the undertow of bad decisions. And the counselor wants to expel "Frogman" just as soon as he figures out who he really is.
Can Matt figure out how to manage his home life, his academic life, and his advice columnist persona?
Final thoughts: While there are some excellent realistic portrayals here of high school life, there are also quite a few stock characters who never seem to learn or grow. One of those is Matthew Shaw himself. There is a resolution to this story, but it feels rushed and incomplete and Matt never seems to actually change when it's all over. His life doesn't really get better. His mom is still hoarding. He's still an outcast to many. It just feels unfinished.
Rating: 3/5
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/sh...
Matthew Shaw is an unintentional loner. He wants friends but friends mean inviting people to his house and his mom has made sure that he'll never do that. His mom is a hoarder and Matthew does everything he can to keep himself and his life in the house away from those outside the house.
After Matt's best friend moves out of state, Matt seeks solace in the idea of helping others. He contributes to the school's advice forum under the pseudonym of "Frogman". And while he thinks he may actually be helping, the school's counselor does not and ends up shutting down the forum. Now Matt has all this advice and nowhere to share it.
Matt enlists the help of the school anarchist and the girl who runs all the practical elements of the student body council. Together, they start their own blog and begin sharing ideas and advice with the students of Henry Blake High.
But not everyone likes Matt's advice. Some take it far too literally. Others get caught in the undertow of bad decisions. And the counselor wants to expel "Frogman" just as soon as he figures out who he really is.
Can Matt figure out how to manage his home life, his academic life, and his advice columnist persona?
Final thoughts: While there are some excellent realistic portrayals here of high school life, there are also quite a few stock characters who never seem to learn or grow. One of those is Matthew Shaw himself. There is a resolution to this story, but it feels rushed and incomplete and Matt never seems to actually change when it's all over. His life doesn't really get better. His mom is still hoarding. He's still an outcast to many. It just feels unfinished.
Rating: 3/5
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
August 1, 2022
Matt is the loner a school: not an athlete, not popular, and not really into any clubs at school. He does, however, give great advice online, after seeing an advice column that the counseling office has started on their school website. The advice from the counselor is terrible, but Matt' is able to add comments onto posts with his own advice, which is spot on and appropriate for high schoolers. He signs all of his responses as "Frogman". Matt and another boy in his class decide to start an underground newspaper online, The Henry Blake Underground, and Frogman's advice column goes live for the student body,
Everything seems to go well and the boys even get help from another classmate, who is very involved in the student council and even ropes Matt into helping out with that. But then some students don't appreciate the advice (especially the cheaters who don't understand why their boyfriend/grlfriend broke up with them) and they blame the Frogman. Everyone wants to know who the anonymous advice-giver is.
An interesting story. I;m not sure why Matt was so worried about being expelled from school. I've taught for 25 years and have never seen a kid expelled, even after attacking teachers. But this was a major worry throughout the story for Matt. Also, Matt's home life was ridiculous and I'm not sure why NO ADULT in the story ever reported things to CPS. But really, nothing much happened in this book. Matt read questions from students, gave them advice, people got mad, and he was all worried about being in trouble. I needed more meat to this story.
Everything seems to go well and the boys even get help from another classmate, who is very involved in the student council and even ropes Matt into helping out with that. But then some students don't appreciate the advice (especially the cheaters who don't understand why their boyfriend/grlfriend broke up with them) and they blame the Frogman. Everyone wants to know who the anonymous advice-giver is.
An interesting story. I;m not sure why Matt was so worried about being expelled from school. I've taught for 25 years and have never seen a kid expelled, even after attacking teachers. But this was a major worry throughout the story for Matt. Also, Matt's home life was ridiculous and I'm not sure why NO ADULT in the story ever reported things to CPS. But really, nothing much happened in this book. Matt read questions from students, gave them advice, people got mad, and he was all worried about being in trouble. I needed more meat to this story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 1, 2022
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Let me preface this with I'm not the demographic for this book so that's a factor.
This book was around 2.5 stars for me. I like the concept, but the book fell flat for me throughout. It started out strong and had a strong-ish ending for me, but I didn't feel super emotionally attached to some of the things happening in the middle. While the book was interesting following "Frogman" and his crew I feel like I couldn't pin down the point of this book and while race and mental health are touched on, it didn't feel like the story went very deep to me. All said and done it felt like it wrapped up very quickly and unexpectedly.
Overall not for me, but can see why other readers would enjoy it.
Let me preface this with I'm not the demographic for this book so that's a factor.
This book was around 2.5 stars for me. I like the concept, but the book fell flat for me throughout. It started out strong and had a strong-ish ending for me, but I didn't feel super emotionally attached to some of the things happening in the middle. While the book was interesting following "Frogman" and his crew I feel like I couldn't pin down the point of this book and while race and mental health are touched on, it didn't feel like the story went very deep to me. All said and done it felt like it wrapped up very quickly and unexpectedly.
Overall not for me, but can see why other readers would enjoy it.
October 25, 2023
It was an easy enough read that I could just relax and listen to the narration without feeling like I was struggling to comprehend the plot. Speaking of, the narrator did a fantastic job of heightening the experience for the reader.
This was fast-paced and had a lot of subplots that kept me wanting more.
I loved how this encapsulated the young adult vibe. It was a great book that really captivated and kept me on the edge of my seat. I felt like I was right there along with these characters.
This was fast-paced and had a lot of subplots that kept me wanting more.
I loved how this encapsulated the young adult vibe. It was a great book that really captivated and kept me on the edge of my seat. I felt like I was right there along with these characters.
November 6, 2023
When choosing a book, .I want mystery - I want mayhem - and a good plot I can get lost in. Heidi Voss delivers.
I really liked the contrast of the characters and how well they were portrayed.
The characters develop throughout the story, and the plot has twists and turns that keeps the reader guessing until the final scene.
The narrator did an amazing job heightening the experience for the listener.
I really liked the contrast of the characters and how well they were portrayed.
The characters develop throughout the story, and the plot has twists and turns that keeps the reader guessing until the final scene.
The narrator did an amazing job heightening the experience for the listener.
October 24, 2023
I thought this was a great escape from the real world. I love audiobooks where everything just feels more REAL.
It has wit and banter that cut through the heavier issues. It’s really well-balanced.
It’s a solid story, has great characters, and really spoke to young adult life and the very real things young adults deal with these days.
It has wit and banter that cut through the heavier issues. It’s really well-balanced.
It’s a solid story, has great characters, and really spoke to young adult life and the very real things young adults deal with these days.
August 23, 2023
The emotions conveyed in this book are so powerful, so real... I wept for Frogman. Beautiful.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews