Teen Book Review: 8 Notes to a Nobody

8 Notes to a Nobody by Cynthia T. Toney

Summary:

Funny how you can live your days as a clueless little kid, believing you look just fine … until someone knocks you in the heart with it. Wendy Robichaud doesn't care one bit about being popular like good-looking classmates Tookie and the Sticks—until Brainiac bully John-Monster schemes against her, and someone leaves anonymous sticky-note messages all over school. Even her best friend, Jennifer, is hiding something and pulling away. But the spring program, abandoned puppies, and high school track team tryouts don’t leave much time to play detective. And the more Wendy discovers about the people around her, the more there is to learn. When secrets and failed dreams kick off the summer after eighth grade, who will be around to support her as high school starts in the fall?

Review: 

This is the first book in Cynthia T. Toney’s Birdface series which follows Wendy, a young Louisiana teen, through her 8^th-grade year and into high school. 8 Notes to a Nobody is a beautiful and impactful novel about the difficulties of the middle school years. This story deals honestly with many tough subjects such as low self-esteem, depression, and other serious issues. Toney does an incredible job of tackling these challenging topics in a hopeful and empowering way.

I love how the main character finds the strength to take charge and change things for herself by following her 5-step plan to making friends. This is such a great, proactive idea that all teens could try. It was wonderful to see how things changed for her over the summer as she prepared for high school. Kids at this age often are unable to see past their problems, so the message that even though heartache and tragedies occur, things can change and get better, is a powerful and positive one. This is a wonderful book for any middle school student.

Amazon Link

https://www.amazon.com/Notes-Nobody-Bird-Face/dp/1938092481/

A note from Reviewer:

As a writer and a mother, I’m always searching for wonderful Christian books for teens of all ages. I truly believe one way we can encourage teens in their faith is through fiction with positive messages, embedded in great stories. There are many fantastic Christian and Catholic teen novels out today but they can be hard to find. I’m excited to share some of these books with you.

Leslea Wahl

www.LesleaWahl.com