Amazon | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound
**Starred School Library Journal Review: “An absolute must-purchase for all middle school libraries.”**
**Hand-picked by Amazon editors as an Amazon Best Book for ages 9-12**
**A 2023 Whitney Awards finalist**
**A 2024 Nene Award nominee**
**A 2024 Volunteer State Book Award Nominee**
Jack’s hilarious online videos might get thousands of views… but is fame worth the price of friendship? The humor of I Funny meets the multiple perspectives of Because of Mr. Terupt.
Meet Jack Reynolds. Making people laugh is his life’s work. Jack’s wacky MyTube channel is really starting to take off. The only problem is, for the truly epic posts, he needs a collaborator. And, well, he doesn’t exactly have any friends. So Jack has to swallow his pride and join the new afterschool club, Speed Friendshipping. But who would make the best partner in comedy?
• Brielle, Miss Perfect candidate for student body president?
• Mario, whose mom won’t even let him have a smart phone?
• Or Tasha, the quiet, mysterious girl with a shaved head and a crocheted hat for every day of the week?
One of these kids could help catapult Jack to internet fame… or even become a true friend. But what will it cost him to go viral?
With an unfailing knack for the middle-grade voice, Arianne Costner, author of My Life as a Potato, explores themes of friendship, belonging, and the ways social media can put pressure on today’s kids.
For ages 8-12
Praise for CONFESSIONS OF A CLASS CLOWN:
“Heartfelt and hilarious! This class clown is one to root for!” –Rob Harrell, author of Wink
“Refreshingly current and hilarious! Jack will make you snort-laugh and steal your heart.” –Jessica Kim, author of Stand Up, Yumi Chung
“(Costner) tackles complex, deeply relevant issues, such as feelings of insecurity and arrogance and the difference between how we present ourselves in a media-centric world and the people we are in private.” –School Library Journal
“Costner’s nondidactic exploration of digital technology and social media sustains a quiet insistence that lasting connections are sweetened by humor but leavened with sincerity.” –Kirkus Reviews
“My kids and I absolutely LOVED this book!!! It hooked us from the very beginning. We laughed so hard, felt sad at some parts, and smiled the whole book.” –Goodreads reviewer
“No one in our house has been able to put this book down. My son is laughing out loud. My daughter is grabbing it and reading chapters before bed time. My hubby is coming upstairs to listen when I read aloud. This book is leading to fun but also meaningful discussions about friendships, about screens, about privacy that I love.” –Amazon reviewer
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My Life as a Potato
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound
**Wyoming Book Award Winner 2022-2023**
**Tennessee Volunteer Student Book Award Winner 2022**
**Young Hoosier Book Award nominee**
**2021 Cybil Award Nominee**
**2022 Beehive Book Award nominee**
**March Book Madness final bracket**
**A TEACHER’S PICK on Amazon for ages 9-12**
Ben Hardy believes he’s cursed by potatoes. And now he’s moved to Idaho, where the school’s mascot is Steve the Spud! Yeah, this cannot be good.
After accidentally causing the mascot to sprain an ankle, Ben is sentenced to Spud duty for the final basketball games of the year. But if the other kids know he’s the Spud, his plans for popularity are doomed. Ben doesn’t want to let the team down, so he goes to great lengths to keep it a secret. No one will know it’s him under the potato suit . . . right?
Praise for MY LIFE AS A POTATO:
“A grade A, spudtastic (not to mention FUNNY) debut. Arianne Costner sure knows middle school and middle schoolers!” —Chris Grabenstein, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library
“A hilarious, relatable story for any kid who has ever felt out of place.” —Stacy McAnulty, author of The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl
A satisfying lesson in being true to one’s friends. This book will appeal to fans of the Middle School series by James Patterson. —Booklist
“The author keeps the novel moving quickly, pushing forward with witty asides and narrative momentum.” —Kirkus Reviews
“My eleven year old read this so quickly! She didn’t want to do anything other than read this book. She laughed the whole way through the story.” —verified Amazon reviewer
“This was one of the funniest books I’ve read in a long time! I read this out loud to my kids and had to stop reading several times because we were all laughing so hard.” —Goodreads reviewer
For ages 8-12
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