My Life As a Book

Summer's finally here, and Derek Fallon is looking forward to pelting the UPS truck with water balloons, climbing onto the garage roof, and conducting unusual investigations. But when Derek's parents get tired of cleaning up after his "fun," they decide to send him to Learning Camp. His entire summer is ruined! Until Derek starts digging into a family secret involving himself (in diapers! no less), and he realizes that this summer may not be so bad after all. . . .

Janet Tashjian is the author of acclaimed books for young adults, including The Gospel According to Larry, Vote for Larry, Fault Line, and Multiple Choice. Disney adapted Tru Confessions into a television movie starring Clara Bryant and Shia LaBeouf. Tashjian studied at the University of Rhode Island and Emerson College. She lives in Needham, Massachusetts, with her family.

“Janet Tashjian, known for her young adult books, offers a novel that’s part Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2007), part intriguing mystery; yet the best element here is really the first-person voice, which captures so completely the pushes and pulls in the life of someone with learning disabilities. . . . Give this to kids who think they don’t like reading. It might change their minds.”—Booklist, Starred Review
“A kinder, gentler Wimpy Kid with all the fun and more plot.”—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
“Sure to engage fans of Jeff Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid books (Abrams) as well as those looking for a spunky, contemporary boy with a mystery to solve.”—School Library Journal
“[The] illustrations, drawn by Tashjian’s 14-year-old son, Jake, are quite clever.”—Publishers Weekly
“My Life as a Book is a fabulous, fast-paced choice for reluctant and avid readers alike.”—BookPage
“Cartoon drawings by the author’s teenaged son decorate the margins and not only re-create Derek’s illustrated vocabulary lists but also reduce the amount of text on each page, making the book more approachable for kids like Derek. Derek tells readers, ‘If my life were a book, I’d have my own cool adventures.’ It is, and he does.”—The Horn Book
“This book is visually appealing to reluctant readers and shows that all kinds of stories can surprise us.”—Chicago Tribune