Confessions of a Candy Snatcher

by Phoebe Sinclair, Theodore Taylor III (Illustrator)

A night of Halloween fun gone wrong has Jonas wondering if he’s really a wolf in disguise in this fast-paced fiction debut delving into accountability, relationships . . . and zines.

For the past few years, twelve-year-old Jonas and his friends have competed to see how many bags of candy they can grab from unsuspecting trick-or-treaters. No one’s supposed to get hurt, just lose their treats. So Jonas is taken by surprise when one of his smaller targets fights back against his snatching attempt. He’s even more surprised when he starts to receive anonymous notes from someone who knows what happened that night. Jonas already has enough on his plate, between his parents’ ill-defined separation and his own guilt—guilt his friend Concepción challenges him to confront in a zine she’s creating around the prompt “What’s the worst thing you ever did?” It’s a complicated question, one that touches on issues of identity, maturity, physical boundaries, and safety. Featuring zines crafted by award-winning illustrator Theodore Taylor III, Phoebe Sinclair’s debut novel relates an emotive, reflective story about the wonder—and mess—of growing up.

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

336 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 15, 2023

About the author

Phoebe Sinclair (she / hers) is a: writer, wanderer, friend, listener, partner, daughter, sister, aunt, cousin, god parent, zinester, bike-commuter, facilitator, learner, community-worker, writing critique group member, delightfully confounding, and a trouble-maker.

In 1996, she arrived in Boston to attend college and has enjoyed life in the neighborhoods of Back Bay, Allston, and Dorchester –finally landing in (her opinion) Boston’s best neighborhood, where she and her partner have resided for a decade+. She holds a BFA in Writing, Literature and Publishing from Emerson College. Before Boston, Phoebe cut her teeth on life along the Jersey Shore. She visits often. Nothing smells as good as the beach.

Reviews

[andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to RB Media and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Out August 15th, 2023.

--

If I see the word Halloween, I click and that's that.

I must confess, I have no idea who the audience for this book was meant to be.

Jonas is 12 and has a long-standing history of snatching candy from unsuspecting trick or treaters. This Halloween, something goes wrong and soon, he starts receiving anonymous notes in his locker that suggest they know that he was the culprit of the physical altercation.

Telling his story through a zine that disseminates stories about the worst things that kids have ever done, you get snippets of a story that... truly start to add up to feel like something far more insidious than what actually occurs.

I struggled with the writing quite a bit here. It was a little vague in places and hard to follow. The best parts of the book were the "zine" pages that broke up the chapters.

I really wasn't pleased with the casual unchallenged homophobic comments, ie. "you take it up the butt", which I guess is probably standard for boys this age, but it made me struggle on how I'd categorize this story.

This definitely isn't a feel-good Halloween story that the cover portrays and I'm a bit bummed about that and it feels like the story that was trying to be told about physical boundaries, safety, maturity, etc. was a bit too much of a mature message to be discussed through a 12 year old who's simply snatching candy.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved, loved, loved this book for middle-grade readers. The characters are so clear. Sinclair is incredibly attuned to their voices, to the point where she doesn't even need to use punctuation to clarify who is saying (or thinking) what. She knows these kids and the way they interact inside and out.

I read a fair amount of YA books, and this one is truly unique, using comics, zines, and poetry to propel the story. And some of the illustrations by Theodore Taylor III made me laugh out loud. But it is also reminiscent of the best of Paula Danziger and Judy Blume, the way these characters and their personal situations come alive because they are realistically told. I was reminded of how high the stakes of...everything...felt to me at that age. It's incredible to see these characters grow and imagine who they will become.

[January · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confessions of a Candy Snatcher by Phoebe Sinclair, Illustrated by Theodore Taylor III
316-page Kindle Ebook

Genre: Contemporary Middle-Grade Fiction, Holiday > Halloween

Featuring: Pictures, Table of Contents, Titled Chapters, Middle School, 7th Grade, 12-Year-Old MC, Drama, Stories, Sex - Off-Camera, Spanish, Illicit Behavior, Kill Bill, Zine

Rating as a movie: PG-13 for crude humor, mild violence, and sexual innuendos

My rating: ⭐️⭐️½🍬🎃

My thoughts: 🔖Page 19 of 316 Ch. 2 Watch Your Back - I knew this was too good to be true. This book has no quotation marks. 😞 Who does that and why?
🔖116 Ch. 8 Followed - Every time I read North River K–8 or NR K–8 I rolled my eyes, I have never heard anyone refer to a school like that outside of a website, so annoying. There was a school that was Preschool through 8th grade when I was growing up and people called it Bear River or Bear River Elementary, not Bear River Pre-K-8, it's a middle school now. This story feels inauthentic in a lot of parts and that was part of it. My son is on chapter 12 and he said, "It's interesting but just okay." For me it's dull and there's no suspense.

My son gave this book 3 stars for being okay. For me, it wasn't exciting was all over the place and trying to do too much while not doing anything at all. Boring with photos. I'll round it up to 3 stars. I really wanted to like this one but it fell flat and never got back up.

Recommend to others: Not likely, but you never know.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like nothing I have ever read before in the BEST possible way.

[Rebecca Shelton · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is all about Jonas, a 12-year-old who's been snagging candy from trick-or-treaters with his buddies for kicks. But things take a turn when a little resistance leads to a whole lot of introspection, especially with Jonas dealing with his family's issues and some pretty heavy guilt. His friend Concepción throws a curveball with a zine project that really makes him—and us—think about the not-so-sweet parts of growing up.

The story is told from Jonas' perspective, which gives it this raw, inside look at his world. Plus, the zine entries scattered throughout, complete with poems and illustrations add this unique, creative layer that's pretty cool.

The book is a mix of creativity and real talk. It's got a diverse cast, representing different cultures and backgrounds, which is awesome. But then it hits you with some controversial stuff—like casual homophobia, underage drinking, and an underlying tone of victim blaming. It's a lot for a middle-grade book, which isn't the problem. The problem is that these issues aren't addressed or resolved. They're just there with no sense of a lesson or wrap-up.

I think the book tries to navigate through the messiness of growing up and it's got moments that make you pause and think, especially with the zine about consent. However, the execution felt a bit off. The cover and the initial setup make you think it's going to be a light-hearted read, but then it drops these mature themes on you without much warning. It's not that the book doesn't have its moments or that Jonas doesn't grow—it's just that the way it handles some of the issues left me wanting more. More clarity, more sensitivity, and just... more. It's a bummer because there's potential there, but I can't in good conscience recommend it for the younger crowd without some serious caveats. And yeah, that cartoony cover? Definitely misleading.

[Ardie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Because of the title and cover of Confessions of a Candy Snatcher, I was expecting something geared toward ages 8-12. However, due to some more mature content and themes, I’d feel more comfortable recommending this book to younger teens. Unfortunately, because of youthful the cover, I feel most teens wouldn’t pick it up.

I listened to the audiobook version of Confessions, and I’m wondering if I’d have liked it better if I read it in written formate. The narration of the zines wasn’t descriptive enough, so I was often left feeling confused. Also, I appreciate that it seemed to touch on heavy topics like consent, bigotry, and divorce, but none of those topics seemed resolved at the end. I was left wondering if the anticipated resolution occurred in one of the under described zines, and that’s why I missed it. I’m very hopeful that the physical copy makes much more sense and wraps things up better than the audio version.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
#ConfessionsofaCandySnatcher #NetGalley

[A Mac · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jonas has been struggling with the recent split of his parents and finds himself worrying over his younger sister’s comprehension of the situation. But when notes start appearing in his locker at school suggesting that someone knows his secret from last Halloween, he finds himself even more stressed. His guilt becomes even more prevalent when his friend wants him to contribute to a zine with the theme “the worst thing you’ve ever done.” As Jonas flounders between the disruptions at home and school, he struggles to determine who his real friends are and how he should respond to the anonymous notes.

This read wasn’t at all what I was expecting – based on the title, premise, and cover, I was thinking it would be more of a lighthearted read that centered around the actual candy snatching and the shenanigans that ensued. Instead, this was a darker read that focused on several heavier topics: the recent split of parents who are still trying to figure out their dynamic, growing apart from childhood friends, guilt, and the anger that comes from these things, just to list a few.

I did enjoy the exploration of the topics. I thought it was done well and added much to the characters, though it might make a tough read for younger readers. The characters were well written and diverse – I loved how unique everyone was, and how, despite the many characters, it was easy to keep track of them all based on their excellent characterization. Also, I always appreciate when home school gets a good rep, so extra points for that! The inclusion of zines was also interesting and added a unique element to this work.

There were many difficult and important topics brought in this work, including consent, physical violence, discrimination against queer folks, and guilt. But when I finished the read, it felt that there wasn’t much closure with these topics. In a book for adults, that’s one thing – I do like when not everything is wrapped up in a neat and happy bow. But in a book targeting younger readers, I think it’s more beneficial to provide lessons or positive examples than to leave it open ended and/or not addressed adequately.

Just a heads up, there is a slur and some other discriminatory/nasty comments targeting queer folks, though they were said by a bigoted character so it is plot relevant. Due to this and the heavier topics, I wouldn’t recommend this for MG readers. It’s more YA, but maybe on the younger end of YA. DO NOT read this expecting a Halloween read; DO read this if you want a character-driven read about a 12-year-old boy struggling with the themes mentioned in the second paragraph. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did a phenomenal job; however, I believe there are illustrations as well as sections of the book that are set up like a zine, so keep that in mind when considering reading versus listening. My thanks to NetGalley and RB Media for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

[Elyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confessions of a Candy Snatcher is an engaging book about a middle school boy who thinks the worst thing he’s ever done occurred during Halloween night when he snatched candy. What occurred during the candy snatching remains a mystery to the reader, as Jonas navigated the fallout of that night.

I really wished this had more Halloween elements… That being said, this story explores boundaries, family dynamics, and friendships. I really annoyed the narration. You could sense the urgency, the anger, the confusion coming from Jonas.

There were some moments that had me questioning the writing and the intended audience of the book. Is this how 12-year-old boys act? I’ve never been one and haven’t been around any since my own middle school days, if I’m being honest.

The bigger conversations (consent, for example) were not completely addressed which left the ultimate message of the story muddled. Why introduce an important topic if you’re just going to reduce it to a few sentences or a short conversation?

As someone who listened to the audio, I feel like I lost out on seeing the illustrations so I’d reccomend going with a eBook or physical copy (paired with audio is fine!) for that full engagement.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitely felt real - as much as I'd like to think twelve year olds don't swear or have crushes, they do. That being said, as a teacher I'd definitely steer this to middle school readers, as there are several more mature situations, like mentions of sex, including a character referring to a gay adult as someone who "takes it up the butt" and using the f slur. The book also tackles some difficult subjects like divorce, friendship troubles, homophobia, and an incarcerated parent.

I admired Jonas standing up for himself and others, refusing to drink the beer his friend brought to movie night and shutting down a homophobic friend. It was also nice to see a discussion about how to know when someone is joking vs serious and that it's important to know the difference and respect when one person feels like it goes from the first to the second.

The format was also unique in that the dialogue doesn't use quotations, and every so often there are full pages of illustrations and text that show off the zine pieces. I loved how the zine becomes a part of the story, including the ones from other characters, and would have loved to see more of this!

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twelve-year-old Jonas and his friends get into lots of goofy things, even in the halls of their school. There are girls and jealousy, though it seems that at their age, no one would admit it. It's hard for us adults to read Phoebe Sinclair's debut book and realize that life as a tween is really complicated, but it is! Jonas tells the tale in fast action, even when he has to take care of his little sister Rex (Roxanne) and it turns out she saves him from some embarrassment at times. Then there's his separated parents and having two homes, the entry of something totally new, zines, that a friend wants Jonas to create, too. The candy-snatching comes in when the friend wants Jonas to answer the question, "What's the worst thing you ever did?" and what turns into the real self-searching even twelve-year-olds must do. Zines by illustrator Theodore Taylor III complete the whirlwind of Jonas' life.
Thanks to Candlewick Press for this copy, out just a week ago!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jonas and his friends don’t bother trick-or-treating – they just steal candy from other trick-or-treaters. Last Halloween, Jonas hurt someone snatching their candy and has not apologized or made amends. Worse, he accidentally hurt the same classmate during PE class. When Jonas starts getting “I know what you did” notes in his locker and starts to see his friend for the homophobic bully that he is, he finds himself questioning his actions and his choice of friends. Meanwhile his parents have separated and might be headed towards divorce. When his home-schooled friend C. (Concepcion) encourages him to create a Zine with her and poses the question, “What’s the worst thing you ever did?” Jonas starts writing poems using the old typewriter his Mom’s employee finds in the back of his Mom’s store. Readers will enjoy the Zines that illustrate the book and will be enamored by Jonas learning how to use a typewriter.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is around 3.25 stars. (For me) a story from the perspective of a 12 year old African American was unique.

Listened to the audio book and the narrator (Ruffin Prentiss) did a fantastic job.

He was involved with candy snatching at Halloween and his conscious is getting the best of him ... plus normal middle school complications and parents that are separated.

(Debating between 3 and 4 stars, but ultimately decided to round down. Pro - narration; Con - some homophobic comments, slipping several opportunities at honesty with respected teachers and parents.)

Not too keen on the ending, which was a little weird..

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to the advance listen copy of Confessions of a Candy Snatcher by Phoebe Sinclair. Thank you to publisher RB Media for approving my NetGalley request. The advance copy is in exchange for an honest review.

[Charlie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read after winning in the Giveaway.

Obviously I'm not the target audience for this book. But I have 2x 14yo, 1x12yo, 1x9yo and 1x7yo who I though5 could relate.

Nope.

How do you intend on having kids read if you don't edit like a normal book. No quotation mark makes it IMPOSSIBLE to understand the dynamic of the dialogs.
It's the worst mental exercise trying to read this.

The story feels dark. From the beginning. No 'fun' lines, no jokes.

This kid is already aware of adults interactions and girl/boys interactions.
I get that it's a 'growing up' story, but at chapter 5 we still are not sure of what the candy snatching is about.
But it sure feels like the beginning of a criminal minds episode.

So that's a no for me. And I will not be passing it down to the kids.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story with all the characters within. The main character was Jonas.

Jonas is a twelve years old boy. On Halloween night he did something that someone saw. That someone is writing notes and leaving them at Jonas locker. Jonas doesn't know who is doing this and want to know why. Jonas doesn't want anyone to know what he did that night.

This was a fun story to read or listen to. It had action, adventure and suspense. It had a few giggles within.

I received a complimentary audio copy via Netgalley. I listened to the audio and the narrative did a good job. This is my honest unbiased opinions.

[Glenna Coleman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an intriguing story, but I felt that I was pulled in too many directions, that so much was trying to be conveyed that perhaps there should have been two books. There were family issues, friend issues, guilt issues, growing up issues, unrepentance, and a plug for zines. Each time I thought I had discovered the unifying thread, it would all fall apart. On top of that, the main character, Jonas, complains that his friend C's texts are hard to understand because she never uses punctuation. Not using quotation marks for dialogue impeded me somewhat as I tries to puzzle out the dialogue from the thoughts from the narration. I would love to see another book from this author, though.

[Nate Beatty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Confessions of a Candy Snatcher was a great mystery novel. The book is about a boy named Jonas. Jonas competed in candy snatching with his friends. Soon after Halloween Jonas started to get notes and he started to make more friends and then more enemies. I am giving this 4 stars, I would have given 5 stars but I think it would have been better if there were more details between how the candy snatching started. I was very interested in the book as a middle schooler. I think that more males would like this book because I feel like more males would be able to understand what Jonas is going through. Confessions of a Candy Snatcher is a great book and should be on your read list.

[Susie]

Phoebe Sinclair’s writing style makes the young voice of Jonas feel real. The language feels immersive and true as he navigates the turbulent world of school, two homes, friends-unbecoming-friends, and coming of age.
A love letter to finding yourself through writing, typewriters, and zine making.

—
Favorite quotes:
“My chest felt tight, half like my heart was squeezing down to the size of a walnut and half like something inside wanted to fly out, to snap and snarl and bite.”

“Place was a pale brick box, no windows, no posters of a kitten desperately gripping a rope. Hang in there. From my seat, I inspected the dark seams and corners. No evidence anyone had ever loved anything here.”

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

The back of the book says ages 10-14. I think, unless your 10 year old is fairly mature, maybe 12-15 is more on target.

The story deals with a lot of heavy themes, but presents them honestly- with the struggle and pain and confusion that comes with being a 12 year old trying to make sense of everything that changes when you’re that age. There’s a good amount of levity to keep it from being overwhelming though, and the art/zine pages break the intensity up nicely.

Darker than I’d expected, but worth it all the same.

[Haley Kilgour]

I dnf’ed at 6%.

I want to start by saying there was nothing inherently wrong with this book. The initial plot was interesting and had me guessing. The characters were realistic and had the potential for a lot of development.

But I’m a 28 year old woman reading a book designed for 12-13 year old boys. I can usually read middle grade books and enjoy them. But this one just didn’t spark my interest.

I do however thing that this is a book that will be greatly enjoyed by its target audience.

[Arjun Manoj · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent enough for Phoebe Sinclair's first book. There are some teeny-tiny edits she needs to make.
1. Put quotation marks
2. fix some spelling mistakes(ex. ko, chinese food? ko should be so)
Otherwise, the book is great, and i recommend this to other readers!

[Tory · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read a VERY VERY VERY early ARC so take all this with much salt.

-Zine focus was cool!
-WAYYYYYYYYYYYY too long, especially for the "it" not even being THAT bad.

[Rosa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not a mystery.

[PottWab Regional Library]

A

[Jennifer Infantino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful language
nuanced characters
layered story
creatively unfolds ♥️

[Axel Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

[Holly Wagner]

Definitely not an elementary level book. Jonas witnesses his separated parents in an intimate encounter, Mikey (age 12) brings beer to a movie night, and that’s the obvious stuff. The mystery revolves around an assault perpetrated by the main characters of the story on Halloween. The boys use derogatory language describing a gay character (I don’t want to write it in this review). Just too many things for an elementary book.

[Porshea DiMera · Rating 4 out of 5]

One thing a social group is going to do is react when someone feels violated. Often the violator does their best to cover up the violation, even if they feel ashamed. This is the dynamic of the characters in this story and we don't really see how the rest of the group or the victim - of candy theft - have decided to handle this violation until later in the story. While I liked that we get a sense of the protagonist hiding something for much of the story and this feels true to life, I would've liked time spent from the victim's perspective.

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

My only real complaint here is that the lack of quotation marks made the dialog kind of blur into everything else, a little difficult to read at length.

In some ways, I think this could have worked even better as an illustrated novel, so it was more zine-like on the inside, though I'm sure that would have resulted in a length difficult to convince the 6th and 7th (and possibly some 5th) graders that should be reading it.

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central

Jonas is in middle school on the Jersey Shore, and has a solid group of friends, including Mikey, Aaron, Darius, and Concepción, with whom he sometimes has difficulties. At home, he has to deal with two households; his mother's small house, and his dad's condo. He goes between the two of them with his seven year old sister, Rex. Last year, at Halloween, Jonas and his friends engaged in their yearly tradition of snatching candy from younger children. His thoughts are that no one ever got hurt, but last year things went sideways in a way he didn't expect. Now, someone is leaving him notes at school that say things like "I know it was you," and "Watch your back". Jonas already feels a lot of guilt, and when Concepción (whom he calls C.) asks him to write an article for her zine on "the worst thing you ever did", guilt begins to eat at him even more. He has a typewriter given to him by Stew, who used to babysit him and Rex, and who now is manager of the Soho Stationery shop and has a boyfriend who is a pro skater. Jonas starts writing poems about his worst experiences, and between chapters we seem some of the zine pages he creates, along with illustrations. As his guilt becomes more and more overwhelming, will he find a way to process them and make things right?

The only other middle grade book I've ever seen that included information about zines was Perez's 2017 The First Rule of Punk. While they had their heyday in the 1980s and 90s (before the wide spread use of the internet), zines are apparently seeing a resurgence among young people, not that the internet isn't as novel. I've yet to see any emerge from my school, but will say that Jonas if lucky that Stew gave him a typewriter. I saw one marked at $60 at my local thrift store, and it wasn't even as pink and cool as Jonas' sounded!

The real appeal of this book is the format; not only are there illustrations by the talented Theodore Taylor III in between chapters, decorating zine articles, but there are no quotation marks. Instead, all of the text is left justified, but there is more white space between each separation. This is rather unique, and will appeal to readers who want a book that looks longer than it actually is.

There are a few negative comments centered on Stew and his lifestyle, but they are made by one of the bullies, who is not seen as a positive character.

Readers who are looking for a Halloween story won't find a lot of holiday details here, but those who want a story about guilt and its raminfications like the conduct-of-life themes in Stead's The List of Things That Will Not Change, Culley's The Natural Genius of Ants, or Lockington's In the Key of Us will appreciate Jonas' journey.

I'm not sure that this is a book that my students are going to enjoy, so may pass it on to another school. If this had centered more on Halloween, it would definitely have been popular. There just aren't any books about the preparations and celebration of Halloween and trick or treating, other than Charlie Bumpers and the Squeaking Skull, or a few series that might have an installment about the holiday. (Like Sheth's Nina Soni: Halloween Queen (Nina Soni #4) or Brown's Lola Levine and the Halloween Scream (#6))

[joanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to read a VERY advanced version of this YA gem, so while I already know I like it (and the author, my sis, so much!!!) I have yet to read it in its final crystallized version! So it's a "to read" still.