Forsooth

by Jimmy Matejek-Morris

Overview

Thirteen-year-old Calvin knows he's destined to be a star. . . if he can just stop making embarrassing mistakes onstage, like getting stuck on a single line—"Forsooth!"—and then falling off the stage during the school play.

The summer after seventh grade, he's hoping for a fresh start. All he has to do is prove himself as an actor and fix the awkwardness with his friends that started after the play.

But nothing's going according to plan. His parents don't get his love of performing. His best friend is moving on without him. And he might have a crush that could change everything.

Surrounded by drama on all sides, Calvin will have to go off script if he's going to be a real friend and be true to himself.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781728457598
Publisher:	Lerner Publishing Group
Publication date:	11/07/2023
Pages:	360
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 7.75(h) x 1.13(d)
Age Range:	10 - 11 Years

About the Author

Jimmy Matejek-Morris was born and raised in New Jersey, the middle of five children. He earned undergraduate degrees in Film and English at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. After graduating, Jimmy moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where he earned an MA in Children's Literature and an MFA in Writing for Children from Simmons College (now University). He currently lives in Massachusetts with his husband Scott and their very well-dressed poodle-Pomeranian named Rudy. His first novel, My Ex-Imaginary Friend, was named a Best Children's Book of the Year by the Children's Book Committee at Bank Street College.

Editorial Reviews

09/25/2023

All the world’s a stage to 13-year-old Catholic theater kid Calvin Conroy—if only he can stop falling off them. His misstep at the climax of Longfellow Middle School’s Cinderella production is a low point for Calvin, who feels that his anxiety constantly foils his dreams of shining in the limelight. Calvin hopes that summer will be a chance to make amends for his stumble to his two best friends, leading lady Kennedy Carmichael and Jonah Franklin, Calvin’s secret crush. But when Calvin learns that Kennedy is leaving for drama school in N.Y.C., he enlists Jonah, confident classmate Maia Ruiz, and intriguing neighbor Blake Richardson to produce a movie about Kennedy’s life in the hopes that it will convince her to stay. A dramatic second-person prologue gives way to Calvin’s sensitive and enthusiastic first-person POV in this funny and joyous ode to creative expression. Matejek-Morris (My Ex-Imaginary Friend) delves into adolescent friendship drama and Calvin’s challenges growing up queer in a religious family, as well as issues of internalized racism, via theatrical hijinks that add levity to the weighty themes. Calvin, Blake, and Kennedy read as white, Maia is Latinx coded, and Jonah is Black and Jewish. Ages 11–14. Agent: Emily Keyes, Keyes Agency. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

"Calvin's panicky narration is easy to empathize with, giving the reader a front-row seat to his anxiety. Heavier themes are balanced with lightheartedness and references that will delight any theater kid. The topic of religion, in particular—Catholicism and Judaism, as experienced via a friend's bar mitzvah—is approached with both humor and thoughtfulness. Calvin's first attempts at romance and sometimes toxic friendships result in a lot of drama, but his showstopping antics are a joy throughout." —The Horn Book Magazine

From the Publisher

10/01/2023

Gr 5 Up—After an embarrassing fall off stage during the school play, 13-year-old Calvin Conroy is ready for a quiet summer recovering from public humiliation. Then he learns his best friend Kennedy is moving away to attend a prestigious arts school in New York City, and he throws himself and his friends into creating a movie that will hopefully change her plans. Throughout the summer, Calvin must juggle the complicated dynamics of middle school friendships, his parents' expectations and strict rules, his Catholic identity, and his emerging romantic feelings for boys. Although many readers will relate to Calvin's experiences, they may grow weary of the intense focus on Calvin's emotions and relationships with no attention-grabbing plot outside of them. VERDICT Chock-full of theater references, middle school romance, and drama, this book will find fans among so-called "theater kids," but is too niche for a general audience.—Maria Bohan

School Library Journal

2023-09-09
Oh no! Theater kid Calvin’s bestie is abandoning him for a New York City performing arts school: Would a movie about her life convince her to stay?

Seventy-three days after hapless 13-year-old Calvin falls off the stage during Cinderella, he learns his best friend, Kennedy, is leaving. Plus, he sees her and Jonah, his other BFF and secret crush, kissing. Argh! Then new neighbor Blake starts knocking on Calvin’s window. While Calvin’s controlling, devoutly Catholic mother has concerns about Blake, who’s covered in hand-drawn tattoos, Calvin feels drawn to him, and Blake talks him through anxiety attacks. Between the Kennedy movie, church choir, confusing feelings for two boys, and keeping his parents in the dark about, well, everything, Calvin’s going to have a summer of drama—forsooth! Calvin’s life offers many laugh-out-loud moments, like when he accidentally sets the priest on fire. But the story’s core is Calvin’s learning how to be a good friend, repair relationships he’s broken, cope with anxiety, and be his best self. His anxiety struggles and worries over his parents’ discovering his sexuality are sensitively handled. The layered, complex characters struggle with similarly complicated and challenging friendships. A lack of closure about Calvin’s crushes may irritate readers, however, and the cover art reads deceptively young. Most main characters are cued white; Jonah is Black and Jewish.

A funny and thoughtful exploration of middle school relationships. (author’s note, discussion questions) (Fiction. 11-13)

Kirkus Reviews