Twerp by Mark Goldblatt

I really enjoyed this book.  Twerp (Julian Twerski) is a young Jewish boy living in New York in the late 1960s.  At the beginning of the book you find out he has been suspended and that his English teacher wants him to write about it.  Julian writes.  He writes about a lot of things - his friends, walking the fence with the circus axle, Jillian and the love letter, and running - but he does not write about what happened to Danley until the very end.  Julian is a great character - a bit insecure, caring, and really sorry for what he did but not sure how to make it right.  Of course, throw in a character from Guatemala and that made it even more interesting to me - and Eduardo was a great character too.  There was a bit of language and some parts of the book that boys will love and girls might find uncomfortable.  Given the time period there were terms used that some might find offensive so it be good to make sure students understand the context of the book.  This gets a ribbet from me.

I think this book would work well for grades 5 - 8.

I received a digital copy of the book from Netgalley but I am not required to do a positive review.  The book will be released on May 28th.  I am hoping the cover is actually more orange than it looks on my digital version or it is changed altogether just so it is easier to sell to the boys.