writing
Named one of Kirkus Reviews best books of 2016, Gary Schwartz’s heartfelt, hilarious, pun-filled middle grade novel tells of an eleven-year old’s quest for love and self-acceptance in a land where psychological states are actual places.
Synopsis
James is convinced by his cruel and unhappy mother he is worthless and unlovable. So, armed with a report card that boasts a C average, he sets out to prove he is worthy of her love by becoming the most average kid in the entire world.
This idea magically transports him into the Realm of Possibilities, where he meets Mayor Culpa, an actual Scapegoat, Monsieur Roget, a professional Optimist and his grouchy companion, Kiljoy, an equally professional Pessimist.
Together with his new friends, James has wondrous adventures that include an attack by a tribe of Nervous Nellies who pelt him with worry warts, being stalked by the dreadful Creeping Doubt and reuniting the former King of Average, Norman the Unexceptional, with his estranged children, Jerome the Ordinary and Marie, the Extra-Ordinary. Eventually he finds a Shangri-La called Epiphany, and realizes if you can be the most average person ever – you can be the most anything you want in the whole wide world.