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    Twerp
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    Twerp
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    Twerp
    Audiobook5 hours

    Twerp

    Written by Mark Goldblatt

    Narrated by Everette Plen

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    It's not like I meant for him to get hurt. . .

    Julian Twerski isn't a bully. He's just made a big mistake. So when he returns to school after a weeklong suspension, his English teacher offers him a deal: if he keeps a journal and writes about the terrible incident that got him and his friends suspended, he can get out of writing a report on Shakespeare. Julian jumps at the chance. And so begins his account of life in sixth grade--blowing up homemade fireworks, writing a love letter for his best friend (with disastrous results), and worrying whether he's still the fastest kid in school. Lurking in the background, though, is the one story he can't bring himself to tell, the one story his teacher most wants to hear.

    Inspired by Mark Goldblatt's own childhood growing up in 1960s Queens, Twerp shines with humor and heart. This remarkably powerful story will have readers laughing and crying right along with these flawed but unforgettable characters.

    A Bankstreet Best Book of the Year
    A Junior Library Guild Selection
    A Summer Top Ten Kids' Indie Next List Pick
    A Sunshine State Award Finalist

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateMay 28, 2013
    ISBN9780804121576
    Unavailable
    Twerp
    Author

    Mark Goldblatt

    Mark Goldblatt is a widely published columnist, essayist, and philosopher. He is the author of two novels, Africa Speaks and Sloth. He teaches religious history and developmental English at Fashion Institute of Technology of the State University of New York.

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    Reviews for Twerp

    4/5

    62 ratings13 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Twerp is a funny and touching story of a middle school Jewish boy growing up in the 1960s in Brooklyn. Julian has as his English teacher calls it "the writing bug". The book is a journal Julian keeps at the demand of his English teacher. It is meant to be a further punishment for the misdeed that had Julian and his neighborhood friends suspended from school for a week. This misdeed is not revealed until the book's end. This journal, told in the first person by Julian, provides rich insights into the thoughts and actions of a middle schooler as he negotiates his way through the complex worlds of friendship and school.This book would be a good fit for aspiring writers as Julian proves to be quite a writer throughout his journal. This book would appeal to middle school boys who like to read realistic young adult fiction. This book represents a good glimpse into growing up in a Brooklyn neighborhood in the sixties. It is a good model for the journal form in writing.
    • 4/5
      All kids make bad decisions sometimes, especially when they are being pressured by their peers. Most 5th graders can relate to that--even our most reluctant male readers. In this book, Julian and his friends have been suspended from school for an undisclosed bullying episode. When he returns to school, his English teacher offers him the opportunity to get out of writing a report on Shakespeare if he keeps a truthful journal and writes about what really happened in "the incident." Julian manages to write about everything but this event...friendship, his first love, betrayal... but finally comes to grips with the truth, and in so doing, takes responsibility for his actions. This would make for a good class read aloud in 5th grade to spark discussions in small groups or whole class.
    • 2/5
      Sometimes when you brace yourself for a storm, you get a gentle breeze. The storm only comes when you're braced for nothing whatsoever.
      page 16

      Knowing that, in a thousand years, nothing you're doing or not doing will matter frees you up to do what your heart tells you to do.
      page 189

      Julian Twerski (aka Twerp), was involved in some sort of bullying incident and his English teacher has him writing about what happened to help him understand it better. Because, from what we know, Julian is a good kid who made the wrong choice. It takes most of the book for Julian to finally write about the incident. In the mean time, we get insight into his decision making process and what goes through his mind.

      I must say that I almost stopped reading in Chapter 1 when Julian starts to recount an incident with his friend Lonnie and a pigeon.
      Let's just say I was cringing through the entire chapter. Though it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Anyway, Julian just seems like a dumb kid who is easily influenced by others. But as he writes down the things that happen in his everyday life, he seems to grow and learn.

      I don't really have much to say about this book. It was ok. If you want to read a book about bullying or about kids learning to listen to that little voice in their heads instead of what their friends are telling them to do, there are better books out there. I didn't really connect with the characters or even like them very much. I get that Julian is a "good boy" but in the end, I don't get why he did the things he did in the first place. If that makes any sense.

      Recommended to:
      I would rather recommend Bystander by James Preller.

    • 5/5
      The characters and funny moments in this book made it seem realistic.
    • 3/5
      A competently written diary-form story about a boy who is assigned by his teacher to write about the incident that got him suspended. It is well liked, and I will recommend it to my students, but I myself couldn't really get into it. Maybe it's that I know how kids this age actually write, so the voice didn't ring true to me.
    • 2/5
      I received this book for review from the publisher via Netgalley.

      I had never heard of Twerp or Mark Goldblatt. However, I was browsing on Netgalley and thought that the description sounded interesting, so I requested it. I went into it with an open mind, but I was unfortunately unimpressed.

      Twerp is written as a series of journal entries written by Julian, as an opportunity to get out of writing an essay on Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. I'm not a fan of this writing style. I'm not really sure why, as in theory, it's not much different from any other book written in first person narrative, but it definitely reads differently to me.
      Also, I did not find the characters to be very likable. Julian seems like he knows the right thing to do in many situations but is pretty much a follower. His friend, Lonnie, is the leader of the group, and overall, doesn't seem like a very nice guy. He seems very able to manipulate Julian into doing things he doesn't want to do, and it leads to situations that I guess are supposed to be amusing or thought-provoking, but they just made me cringe and want to smack Julian for not standing up for himself.

      Throughout Twerp, I felt like Julian couldn't catch a break. He just seemed to keep making stupid choices that led to stupid consequences. He does seem to redeem himself a bit towards the end of the book, but definitely not enough to make me like him.

      Twerp wasn't horrible, though. Other than when I thought one scene was going in a different direction than it did, I never considered DNF'ing it. I just wasn't really as invested as I could have been.

      I think Twerp would be appealing to people who like this writing style. It was fairly reminiscent of The Perks of Being a Wallflower to me, which I was also not a fan of. However, I know that a lot of people did really like that book, so they might like Twerp, too. I'm rating it as okay.

      This review is also posted on my blog: Mommy's Reading Break
    • 4/5
      A good story but I am struggling with the intended audience. There's a bit of language and circumstances that don't make this a clear middle grade but it would be a bit too young for YA. They are going after the Wonder crowd with the bullying and such but it does have a good story to it to support the moral.
    • 3/5
      So what if Mark Goldblatt employs a cheap, literary trick to keep his reader's turning the pages? Well, it works. Mainly because he creates a voice in his protagonist, Julian Twerski, that is real, authentic, and honest. The novel is really Julian's journal, written to his teacher as an assignment to get out of writing a book report about Julius Caesar but the what keeps us turning the pages, besides Julian's antics with his Ponzini gang, is to find out what did he do to Danley Dimmel? If it wasn't so bad, then why was he suspended? And why does he harbor so much guilt?

      Frankly, I know half a dozen boys (5-6th grade, reluctant readers, perhaps a little on the "tough" side, but not necessarily) that I could hand this book to and they would love it.
    • 5/5
      I received this book from Netgalley. Julian Twerski is a normal sixth grader. Unfortunately, he gets involved in a bullying incident which earns him a one week suspension from school. When his English teacher offers to let him out of writing a report on Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar if he writes a journal and discusses the incident that led to his suspension, he jumps at the chance. Thus, the journal, aka Twerp, is born. Julian takes us through many of the daily events of a normal 12-year old: singing someone’s eyebrows with homemade fireworks, writing a love letter for his best friend (he writes better, according to the friend), fretting over whether he is still the school’s fastest runner, and so forth. Throughout the book, Julian writes about all the daily activities that consume his life, except the bullying incident that resulted in his suspension from school. Finally, he can avoid it no longer, and puts his description of the incident in his journal. This is an excellent book for young teens, because it covers all the things that consume their lives, while teaching a valuable lesson about bullying. I think the book could help anyone understand that his/her life was not unlike those of similar teens, which can only help them realize they are not some sort of freak. It also points out several good lessons about friendship and how doing the right thing may not always be what everyone wants to do nor will it necessarily lead to allocates or pats on the back—though it does give one a sense of closure and satisfaction at having done the right thing. This book flows easily and smoothly. Even though I am far from the age of the intended audience, I found it a good read. This tells me that the audience is not confined to teens but can include many other demographics.
    • 4/5
      There are few good 'boy books' for those end of elementary school, beginning of junior high school guys and Twerp is one. Although it takes place in Flushing, NY in 1969, it could take place in any time or place because 12 year old boys' problems don't change. They're befuddled by girls (as are guys of any age), they do stupid things, say stupid things and act before they think.Thus, Julian must write a diary after he comes back to school after being suspended because of what happened to Danley Dimmel (which you won't find out, of course, until the last pages). In the meantime Julian becomes Cyrano de Bergerac when he writes a love letter to Jillian for Lonnie. He worries that he may not be the fasted kid in P.S. 23 come Track and Field Day because Edourdo, a Guatamalen orphan taken in by Jillian's family, is big and fast. He worries about his first date. He worries about his bar mitzvah. There are just so many things 12 year old boys worry about.Those of us who grew up in the Bayside/Flushing area of NY will relive some of their memories of Adventureland and the RKO Theater, both of which are no more.So, have some fun with Julian and his friends and read Twerp.
    • 5/5
      TwerpByMark GoldblattMy " in a nutshell" summary...Julian Twerski...a boy growing up in the 60's...trying to stay out of trouble...sort of.My thoughts after reading this book...I loved the humor in this book and the plight of Julian or "Twerp". He has done something not so nice that is alluded to throughout the book. As his punishment he has to write about his life and turn it in to his teacher. He writes about pigeons, love letters, his neighbors, a friend who lost his eyebrows, his sister's beads, his running speed, Hebrew school, his mom's Mah Jong games and so much more.What I liked about Twerp...I loved his thoughts. He was one of those funny without really knowing it characters. This author is an expert at young boy humor...it's hysterical in this book. When Eric falls and bites his tongue and has to go to the hospital because he hurt his " boy" parts...OMG laugh out loud funny! Funny and cute and clever. I am not sure who the best audience for this book is...young boys or grown up girls! Lol...Plus I loved how Julian came to realize he was only the second fastest boy in P.S. 23...you will have to read it to find out why...lol...What I did not like...Hmmm...I really liked it all...the fun got just a bit tiring after awhile...not so much laugh out loud after a while but it was still a great book.Final thoughts...I thought that this was an enjoyably fun book. Sweet, insightful, and charming. Any child of the 60's should love this book! Oh...and young readers, too.
    • 4/5
      Not as good as Wonder, but a great 1960's coming of age story set in Queens NY. I loved the premise that Julian, a 6th grader has to write for his teacher because he'd been involved in bullying. He's happy to get out of the Shakespeare assignment, but somehow Shakespeare starts making sense as he dissects his life. He's challened when a new kid can run faster than he can. He ends up writing a love poem to a girl for his best buddy, and there are unexpected consequences to that. And then there's the bullying. A great middle school read for kids who think.
    • 5/5
      Julian Twerski isn’t a bully. He’s just made a big mistake. He has done something he is deeply ashamed of, something that goes against the grain of his conscience. When he returns to school after a weeklong suspension, his English teacher offers him a deal: if he keeps a journal and writes about the incident that got him and his friends suspended, he can get out of writing a report on Shakespeare. Julian jumps at the chance. And so begins his account of life in sixth grade—blowing up homemade fireworks, writing a love letter for his best friend (with disastrous results), and worrying whether he’s still the fastest kid in school. Lurking in the background, though, is the one story he can’t bring himself to tell, the one story his teacher most wants to hear.There’s nothing like a ‘real’ story to bring a smile to one’s face. The book was inspired by author Mark Goldblatt’s own childhood growing up in Queens during the 1960s. Reading it, one can’t help being taken back to the ‘growing up’ years, when everything is confusing, nothing goes right, everyone else is cooler/faster/cleverer and girls are an unfathomable mystery. Told from Julian’s point of view in typical middle-grader stream of consciousness, the author takes the reader on a trip back in time. Incidents pack Julian’s life and he reacts to them in a visceral and sometimes confused way. Life lessons can be hard, and Julian rolls with the punches, doing his best. He doesn’t always pull it off, but he does make sense of things where he can. Julian is a likeable character and he truly does want to make amends. Kids will enjoy this, but I think their parents will also relish this trip down Memory Lane. Times may change, but kids don’t. Author Mark Goldblatt’s style is quirky and different, but appealing with a touch of nostalgia. Five stars.About the author: Mark Goldblatt is a lot like Julian Twerski, only not as interesting (that’s what he says!). He is a widely published columnist, a novelist, and a professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Twerp is his first book for younger readers. He lives in New York City.Please note that I reviewed an ARC from NetGalley. The book will be available on 28 May 2013.