Surviving Middle School by David McGrail

As Dave describes it, this book “addresses some serious issues such as internet porn, the treatment of girls/women, and the sharing of inappropriate pictures,” but is balanced by the lighter-side of middle school, like school dance drama. In his mind, if we can find a book that tweens will gladly read instead of spending countless hours on social media, that’s a win for parents and tweens alike. We all know kids can be glued to Snapchat, Instagram, video games. I enjoyed some “off the record” stories and names from our past as Dave told me how authentic parts of the book truly are! Bottle rockets, flirting with girls, firecrackers. What else makes this book so rich? It is built off of many of Dave’s own experiences as a middle-school boy.

Cover of Dave McGrail’s Surviving MIddle School: An Interactive Story for Boys Even the cover illustration, by Joaquin Jutt, is intended so that “any boy who picks it up will hopefully see himself in the red hoodie,” Dave explains.

He is excited to subtly teach values that are important to him - empathy, tolerance, and inclusivity, in a way that each reader can relate to his own life. That’s how I’d describe it, but Dave does an even better job, of course.

because it’s so relatable! For me, as a M.O.B., I laughed out loud at some parts and cringed at others (imagining my boys in a fight on the playground, or doing anything dangerous, really!), and for middle school boys, it’s an authentic experience.

because - since it’s a “choose your next move” sort of book - you can read it multiple times and make different choices and have a completely different adventure.

because Dave’s writing is light and conversational, not preachy or serious, and it was fun to see how the story unfolded.I jumped in, and I couldn’t stop reading: Could this be a book that would actually catch my kids’ attention? A young Dave McGrailĪt ages 9, 7 and 4, my boys aren’t quite ready for this book yet, but in just a few years, my eldest can jump into this adventure. house here, he sent me an advanced read of Surviving Middle School: An Interactive Story for Boys (yeah, that’s right, I know important people, and he made me feel cool). He was full of bright ideas, too, and is now sharing them with us as he launches his second book for tweens. Back in my days of velcro sneakers and recess, I knew him as a nice, smart, freckled boy with a bright smile. I’m always looking for books that will catch their attention and let them think positively about reading - like an adventure awaiting them when they open the cover and dive in.Įnter Dave McGrail. In my house of boys, I have good readers skill-wise, but they don’t actually enjoy reading or choose it as an activity.

Surviving Middle School by David McGrail