Books › Tales from a NOT-SO-Secret Crush Catastrophe
Tales from a NOT-SO-Secret Crush Catastrophe
304 pages
A frantic, doodle-filled dive into the high-stakes, hilarious world of middle school crushes and friendship dilemmas.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like intercepting a middle schooler's most dramatic, doodle-filled notebook. The pace is incredibly brisk, propelled by a conversational, highly expressive prose style that uses capitalization and exclamation points to perfectly capture the frantic energy of tween anxiety. The mood is bubbly and lighthearted, even as the narrator treats every social misstep and crush dilemma as an absolute catastrophe. It is a deeply empathetic reading experience that wraps the reader in the chaotic, sun-warmed atmosphere of the end of the school year. Fans of highly visual, diary-format stories will devour this relatable exploration of friendship loyalty and first crushes, finding comfort in its earnest, humorous approach to growing up.
- Mood
- bubbly
- chaotic
- lighthearted
- empathetic
- Tone
- melodramatic
- humorous
- conversational
- earnest
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- middle school social dynamics · first crushes · friendship loyalty · teenage anxiety · fear of hurting others
- The writing
- Highly expressive and conversational, relying heavily on capitalization, exclamation points, and integrated doodles to convey intense tween emotion.
- The arc
- Moves from frantic, high-stakes social panic to a comforting, friendship-affirming resolution.
- Who it's for
- Tweens who crave highly visual, relatable, and humorous takes on the everyday catastrophes of middle school life.
Content notes
- secondhand embarrassment
- mild mean girl dynamics
About the book
Nikki Maxwell has to juggle two kids’ feelings in the twelfth installment in the blockbuster Dork Diaries series!
In Nikki Maxwell’s newest diary, it’s the countdown to the end of the school year, and Nikki’s juggling some big questions about how she’ll spend her summer. She’s also facing an unexpected crush catastrophe—there’s a new kid interested in Nikki, but the last thing she wants to do is accidentally hurt Brandon! It all comes down to a big decision Nikki has to make, and drama like she’s never faced before!
Description from Open Library.
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