Finding the Worm

Gr 5–8—Julian Twerski and the gang from Twerp (Random, 2013) are now in seventh grade, and it seems like they're dealing with an even bigger set of challenges than last year. When Julian is accused of vandalizing a painting at school, he gets locked into a battle with his new principal that he surely can't win. He begins to develop new feelings for his friend Beverly, to the dismay of Howie, her longtime admirer and Julian's friend. Most upsetting of all, Quentin has cancer. Julian, with the help of his friends, finds himself navigating the year before his bar mitzvah in search of what it means to grow up and be a good citizen. Goldblatt takes advantage of Julian's newfound love of writing, adding an honest and forthright tone to the boy's journal entries. A wide variety of readers will relate to Julian's questions about fairness, faith, and friendship.