A Work in Progress by Jarrett Lerner

A Work in Progress by Jarrett Lerner. Aladdin, 2023. 9781665905152






Rating:  1-5 (5 is an excellent or a Starred review) 5



Format : Advance Reader’s Copy



Genre: Realistic fiction



What did you like about the book?  When he was in fourth grade, a cruel comment from a classmate was the first time Will Chambers was aware that other kids saw him as fat.  Initially shocking, the comment sent Will to the school bathroom in near tears; his friends found him and joked him out of his sadness, but the incident proved to be a seminal moment for Will.  He began dressing in baggy clothes, distancing himself from his friends, and eating more in secret.  Fast forward to seventh grade: Will has become socially withdrawn, continues to use food as his coping mechanism, and has started to contend with an aggressive inner voice which constantly calls him ‘fat,’ ‘stupid,’ and ‘ugly.’  Will loves to draw – it seems to be the only thing that brings him comfort other than junk food; he wants to find a way to use his artistic talent to connect with his crush Jules, but knows better than to try to befriend her.  Things come to a head when Will overhears some girls playing “Would You Rather?” during study hall, in which ‘kissing Will Chambers’ is compared to drinking a glass of vomit.  Will decides it’s time for drastic measures.  He challenges himself to eat less and less, using techniques like biting his lip to focus on the pain instead of his hunger, and drinking water anytime he gets hungry, all the while maintaining a dialogue with his inner monster.  To avoid eating during the school day, Will skips the cafeteria in favor of a hiding spot behind the auditorium.  This is where he meets Markus, a new kid at school who is just looking for a place to skateboard for a few minutes.  Markus is the first classmate Will has talked to in a long time, and he is hesitant but hopeful about the prospect of making a friend.  As he considers the pros and cons of opening up to Markus, he continues to deprive himself and conceal his disordered eating from his parents, with near-catastrophic results.  An urgent medical situation brings about a potentially optimistic outcome for Will’s mental and physical well-being.



Popular children’s author and illustrator Jarrett Lerner is best known for his hilarious farting robots, silly pun-filled comics, and abundant activity pages for all types of creative kids; this fictionalized account of his own adolescent trauma is at once devastating and hopeful.  It is heartbreaking to read about his brutal self-hatred, the unkind attitudes of his peers, and the physical and mental health struggles he experienced, but knowing that Lerner rose out of these challenges to become a professional artist and all-around positive human being is inspiring.  The story is told in first-person journal format, complete with lined paper, handwriting font, lots of cartoonish sketches, and angry scribbles; the design serves to reinforce both authenticity and accessibility for readers.  Most of the text is free verse, which gets more and more disjointed and repetitive (in an appropriate and effective way) as Will’s anxiety and anguish spiral and his negative self-talk intensifies, and becomes more cohesive when he comes out on the other side of his health crisis.  A definitive ‘windows and mirrors’ book for mental health, A Work in Progress is an essential read for young people who are living with body dysmorphia and other disorders, but may be even more necessary for their peers and the adults in their lives.



Anything you did not like about the book?  The look of the book will certainly draw attention from the Wimpy Kid crowd, so the adults who are putting it into kids’ hands should be aware of the serious nature of the subject matter and not just offer it up as a light and funny selection.



To whom would you recommend this book? It’s a must-read for students in grade 4 or 5 and up, and any adults who work with or care for upper elementary through high school age kids.  Though not a graphic novel, the illustrated journal format will make the book accessible for all readers, and it should be recommended to readers of books like Starfish or Hey, Kiddo and authors like Alyson Gerber.



Who should buy this book? Public, elementary and middle school libraries



Where would you shelve it?  Fiction



Should we (librarians) put this on the top of our “to read” piles?  Yes



Reviewer’s Name, Library (or school), City:  Leigh Russell King, Lincoln Street School, Northborough, Massachusetts.



Date of review: April 17, 2023