Normal

by Dave Kerpen, Lindsay Brockington

Life for four middle schoolers in New York City can be tough. David’s dad has bipolar disorder. Alexa’s new stepmother will never be able to fill her mom’s shoes. Tiffany’s dad acts like he’d rather be at the bar than at home with his family. And Albert’s got a family secret he can’t even tell his best friend.

All these four strangers want is to be normal, but it seems like they’re cursed to be outcasts no matter how hard they try. That is until they hear about a special school on New York City’s Upper East Side that’s meant for kids who stand out.

Thanks to a lot of hard work, their new school, a magical teacher, and each other, these four misfits soon find that being different makes them something much better than normal. . . . It makes them friends.

213 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 21, 2022

Reviews

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet, well-intentioned YA book that may genuinely help many realize they are not the only ones struggling behind closed doors. I think it’s a good gift for a 5th or 6th grader. It’s decidedly mediocre in character development, dialogue, pretty much all writing dimensions. Still, it does a nice job of capturing what it’s like to be in middle school, feel trapped and embarrassed by your family, and gradually figure out how to make your own way. True rating is 3.5 stars and I might have rounded up another day. I’m perplexed and irritated that the character Ms. Marsh is not acknowledged in the dedication or acknowledgments. Ms. Marsh is (or was) a fantastic teacher who dedicated years to middle and high schoolers in real life as well as in this work of (mostly, nominal) fiction. Thanks Ms. Marsh!