A Work in Progress
(Hardback)
Available Formats
Publishing Details
A Work in Progress
By (Author) Jarrett Lerner
Illustrated by Jarrett Lerner
Simon & Schuster
Aladdin
21st June 2023
United States
Classifications
Children
Fiction
Childrens / Teenage personal and social topics: Emotions, moods, feelings and be
Childrens / Teenage personal and social topics: Bullying, violence, abuse and pe
Childrens / Teenage personal and social topics: Self-awareness and self-esteem
FIC
Physical Properties
Hardback
368
Width 140mm, Height 210mm, Spine 25mm
592g
Description
A young boy struggles with body image in this poignant middle grade journey to self-acceptance told through prose, verse, and illustration.
Will is the only round kid in a school full of string beans. So he hidesin baggy jeans and oversized hoodies, in the back row during class, and anywhere but the cafeteria during lunch. But shame isnt the only feeling that dominates Wills life. Hes also got a crush on a girl named Jules who knows he doesnt have a chance withstring beans only date string beansbut he cant help wondering what if
Wills best shot at attracting Juless attention is by slaying the Will Monster inside him by changing his eating habits and getting more exercise. But the results are either frustratingly slow or infuriatingly unsuccessful, and Wills shame begins to morph into self-loathing.
As he resorts to increasingly drastic measures to transform his appearance, Will meets skateboarder Markus, who helps him see his body and all it contains as an ever-evolving work in progress.
Reviews
"A successful marriage of art and poetry." * --Kirkus Reviews *
* "A perceptive representation of recovery and self-acceptance." * --Publishers Weekly, starred review *
* "Using succinct and personal-feeling verse, Lerner (the Nat the Cat series) crafts an empathetic illustrated novel about one boys experience with body dysmorphia, disordered eating, and stigma. . . .Employing frenetic pacing and disjointed verse that conveys Wills growing anxiety and internalized shame, Lerner cultivates a perceptive representation of recovery and self-acceptance." * --Publishers Weekly, starred review *
Author Bio
Jarrett Lerner is the award-winning creator of more than a dozen books for kids, including the EngiNerds series of middle grade novels, the Geeger the Robotseries of early chapter books, the Hunger Heroes series of graphic novel chapter books, two activity books, the illustrated novel in verse A Work inProgress, and the Natthe Catseries of early readers. You can find him online at JarrettLerner.com and on Twitter and Instagram at @Jarrett_Lerner. He lives with his wife and daughters in Massachusetts.
