We take the trauma of childhood with us into adulthood and, without self-awareness, we can suffer our whole lives. I hope this story will inspire children to better understand their feelings and discover their own truth in an entertaining and fun way.

Weather you were a loner, misunderstood or just dealt with loneliness as a kid, you will be able to relate to my story. I recommend (as have many teachers and parents) that you read this book aloud with your kids. It is a fun story and may cause you to have some great talks with your kids about feeling neglected or ignored.

The King of Average is a Children’s Fantasy Adventure to Find a Way out of Childhood Neglect

Greetings,

I hope I’ve created a great tool all kids can use to take heart.

My debut novel uses humor to address issues of self-worth for neglected kids. My own story was more upsetting than the one in the book. My parents were suffering with mental illness. My father was bi-polar and my mother, a neurotic narcissist,  became schizophrenic. I grew up not aware of their suffering. They were simply my parents.

I had a great idea one day on a walk home: If you could be the most average person in the world, would that finally make you exceptional?

I got that idea when I was eleven years old: The quirky paradox made me laugh. The very idea made a shy boy who suffered from poor self-esteem feel suddenly special. A boy who wanted to be invisible and escape notice in an abusive home now had a mission. Surprisingly, it led to a successful acting career.

One way I coped was by developing a sense of humor. By studying comedians on Ed Sullivan, and practicing impressions, I found I could make the kids at the school lunch table laugh – with me and not at me. Two years later at age 13, I got a chance to perform up and down the Hudson River with Pete Seeger and the great folk entertainers of the 1960s. My professional show business career had started.

When I’m asked how long it took to write this novel, I half-jokingly say “fifty two years”.

The King of Average combines the wit and wordplay found in The Phantom Tollbooth (my favorite childhood book) with the tale of James, an average boy travelling his emotional landscape in the Realm of Possibility. There he befriends a talking scapegoat named Mayor Culpa, a professional optimist and an equally professional pessimist called Kiljoy, and goes on a journey to reclaim his self-esteem.

Gary Schwartz, North Bend WA Oct. 2016