Virtually Me

January 2, 2023
Three seventh graders attending a virtual-reality school amid the Covid-19 pandemic reinvent themselves through their avatars in this thought-provoking read from previous collaborators Morris and Brown (Squint). Bradley Horvath, a white-cued kid who endured fatphobic bullying during in-person schooling, channels his private obsession with K-pop to present himself as pink-haired dancing Daebak (Korean for awesome) upon starting at Balderstein Virtual Junior High. Popular half-white and half-Palestinian Edelsabeth “Edelle” Dahan-Miller is an unwilling student, forced by her mother to use a plain-looking persona after an obsession with her placement on a prettiness-rating website at her former school eroded her mental health. Blond charismatic jock Hunter Athanasopoulos’s avatar is based on his appearance before a recent onset of alopecia. The three students previously knew each other IRL, but now they don’t recognize one another beyond their assumed identities. This discerning examination of middle school social dynamics provides emotional and insightful throughways to difficult conversations surrounding mental health, friendship, and perception of self via three empathetic protagonists striving to fit in and learning that it’s okay to be oneself. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 8–11.

January 1, 2023

Gr 3-7-Remember the push to be productive during the pandemic? Morris and Brown accepted that challenge, writing a middle school ode to individuality fueled by remote learning options. Their tale follows three students, chronicling why each one enrolls in the fanciest virtual middle school imaginable. Seriously, socializing there is realistic and visceral, even down to a seamless virtual dance. Each narrator has different motivations-hating public school, "embarrassing" medical problems, parental interventions-but through it all, they begin examining what fuels their relationships. Messages about accepting people for who they are on the inside are ideal for the target tween/early teen group. There is a humanizing inclusion of the bully's viewpoint, where a shallow popular kid experiences a middle grade dark night of the soul. A potential shortcoming may be that the topic of COVID-19-fueled creativity might lend to a short shelf life. The pandemic is written in bold present tense, with masks and quarantining used without explanation. With a tone perfectly geared towards older elementary and young middle school students, it is possible the COVID-19 references may date the plot. VERDICT A classic "be yourself" tale, with enough VR bells and whistles to keep tweens interested.-Cat McCarrey

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2022
Junior high students reinvent themselves when they attend virtual school. Amid a pandemic (Covid-19 is implied), three alternating narrators enroll in Balderstein Virtual Junior High. But this year, remote learning packs a twist: Students attend classes via virtual reality and interact with one another by creating avatars...or disguises. Bradley Horvath is fat and, thanks to bullies, has had trouble making friends. But as pink-haired K-pop fan Daebak, maybe he'll impress his classmates with his cool dance moves. Lacrosse star Hunter Athanasopoulos appears as himself--but his long-haired blond avatar and competitive attitude hide his worries about losing his hair to alopecia. Edelle Dahan-Miller was a popular trendsetter at school thanks to social media, but her mother insists she present herself sans filters after learning of a misogynistic student website that ranked girls' appearances. Now unrecognizable and calling herself Vanya, who is Edelle without her friends' admiration? When a gaming tournament forces the trio to work together, they make surprising discoveries about themselves and each other. Though the ending is somewhat pat and the characters somewhat two-dimensional, the protagonists' evolving views of friendship and self-acceptance will resonate with readers who struggle to be--or to find--themselves. Warmly supportive parents are a welcome bonus. Edelle is Palestinian and assumed White; Hunter's surname suggests Greek heritage; and Bradley is cued White. Secondary characters are racially diverse; one has cystic fibrosis. Illustrations not seen. A timely, feel-good tale of learning to accept oneself and others. (Fiction. 8-12)

COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.