This book is such an important one to help understand mental health. I want so many to read this, specifically adults, if I’m being honest. It has insight into the struggles when fighting against your own brain as you work to figure out how to survive.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

The messaging in this book is pretty clear, making it a solid choice for middle grader readers. I like the careful balance between the benefit and damaging effects of labels and the importance of personal responsibility. I like, too, that the characters acknowledge forms of privilege and bias, and that the adults often model less than ideal behavior. All of the characters have things to learn in this story.

This books is one all teachers should read. My heart broke for Gwendolyn and her struggles with school, family, and friendships. This story should be a reminder to all teachers to always build on a kid’s strengths.

According to her IEP, there are fifty-four things wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers including that she is demanding, socially inept and impulsive. Gwendolyn feels she can't do anything right and is struggling with school, friends and relationships. Together with her mother and half brother, Tyler, Gwendolyn learns exactly what is "wrong" with her in this new book by Caela Carter.

Love this story. Students who struggle with some of these issues will really see themselves. I liked the descriptions of anger and sadness and happiness and how they take over. The process and ups and downs of solutions is experienced in a realistic manner.

I requested this book for my middle school students. I learned more about a term I don't hear that often, which is neurodivergent. This book is the journey of girl to feel "normal." Middle school is hard enough for those that could be classified as your typical student. I would recommend this book to any student who may feel as if they don't belong. We are all just trying to figure out this thing called life, and it's okay to be atypical. Much praise.

Gwendolyn knows she’s not like other kids her age and when she sneaks a read of an evaluation report about her, she turns to other strategies to try and “fix” herself. Told from the point of view of a neurotypical middle schooler, this is a book very educator should read!

I gave this book 3 stars not because I didn’t like this book, but primarily because it’s not really a middle grade novel. This book will not have wide appeal to middle grade readers. Even though Gwen (and even Tyler) as a character will potentially validate the experiences of many neurodivergent kids, and potentially serve as a mirror for these kids, the long wait for a diagnosis and start of a solution as well will make it hard for most middle grade readers to stick it through.

This definitely reads as more of a book for teachers trying to understand their students rather than a book for kids trying to understand themselves. It still has value, and is a well written depiction of how a neurodivergent brain can work.

Gwendolyn Rogers doesn't quite fit in with the other fifth graders around her, and no one can quite figure out what is wrong with her. But Gwendolyn knows that it isn't just one thing wrong with her, but fifty-four things wrong with her. And nothing she or her mom try seems to help. Gwendolyn is constantly getting in trouble in the after-school program and with her teacher, but when the chance to go to horse camp that summer with her half-brother and friends comes up, Gwendolyn becomes determined to be good enough to go. But things may not be so easy and her hope of going might be slipping away. When a new therapist enters the scene, maybe Gwendolyn just might finally get the help she has been yearning for.
This book is a must read for any person who has ever been different from the general masses. All reader's will feel like they are in Gwendolyn's brain, and she is so authentic and really wants to be better. Gwen's mom is a hard-working single mom who is clearly trying her best. The story is told in such a real way with a sensitivity due to the topic of kids who struggle with a disorder. This book would be great for everyone to read. As a teacher this book really helped me to remember that all children aren't acting out or forgetting because they are "bad" kids. As a mom it helps to frame the struggle it can be to help our children, and points out that sometimes the best thing we can do is love and support them. As a human being it helps to see that not everyone fits the mold and that we can all be more understanding and loving of those who don't fit with what society says is normal. This was a super-fast read for me and I recommend it.

Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers, is sure to be everywhere! Being inside Gwendolyn's mind is exhausting and reasonable, so it will give insight to anyone who cannot imagine what is going on inside the head of someone with ADHD...or the things that come together to tell her she has 54 things wrong.

It is an important book as well as engaging. And, as soon as Gwendolyn says she is a heart-splinter kid, she will break your heart and nestle inside. Can you imagine one of your kids walking around with a list of 54 things they think are wrong with them?

Getting inside Gwendolyn's head will help everyone become more compassionate, caring, patient, and understanding. Likewise, it communicates the trials her mom goes through to make the "right" choices to help Gwendolyn. The story peels back the curtain and lets readers engage on an intimate level with the characters in the book and how her challenges affect everyone in her circle.

This book about a 5th grade girl who doesn't know how to control her anger and might have ADHD will be a hit with readers who like "Fish in a Tree" and "Rain Reign." There is no easy solution and her struggles are real. As a teacher the book had me reflect on some things I might do differently with neurodiverse students.

Gwendolyn Rogers has a list. She has a list of everything that is wrong with her. Things like she talks too loud and is impulsive and a picky eater and careless. These words came from the Individualized Education Program (IEP) that was written up about her. She’s seen therapists and tried diets and been told to be good a million times. It’s not that she doesn’t want to be good. She does want it, and she tries really hard, but she has 54 things that are wrong with her.

And that’s why she can’t go to Horse Camp. Even though she wants to go to Horse Camp, more than she wants anything else.

Her friends and her brother Tyler (they don’t live in the same house, but they had the same father) will all get to go to Horse Camp, because they don’t have things wrong with them. They don’t get so overwhelmed by the anger inside them that their brains break and they act out in impulsive ways that make teachers call her mom. But Gwen does. Sometimes the anger inside her grows so big that she can’t help herself. Because she has 54 things wrong with her.

But her mother wants to make things better for them both. Her mother keeps trying new things, to see if they will help. And they don’t. Usually, they make things worse. But then Gwen’s mother takes her to see Dr. Nessa, and Dr. Nessa tests Gwen some more. She figures out that there is really only one thing wrong with Gwen—she has ADHD. And now that Gwen and her mother know what the problem is, they can try to find a solution.

There is no perfect solution for ADHD, and when the first medicine they try dulls Gwen’s Gwen-ness, they stop it. Then they try a second medicine, and that helps her stay organized but makes her angrier. But the more Gwen learns about her ADHD, the more she understands that there isn’t anything wrong with her. She didn’t lose most of her friends because she’s socially inept. She lost most of her friends because she shut down after reading that bad IEP, and they’ve been waiting for her to come back to them.

And as she works at becoming more honest with what she’s going through, either by thoughtfully sharing her experiences with her friends or by accidentally letting her mouth get ahead of her brain, Gwen realizes that people care about her. Her mother and her friends and her brother all love her because of who she is, because of her humor and creativity and spirit. And no matter what is wrong with her, they will stand by her.

Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers is a really amazing look at what goes on inside a kid with ADHD. Gwen’s thoughts and feelings burn so bright through these descriptions that you can feel what it must be like to struggle with the disease. Author Caela Carter brings that intensity to life in such a powerful way that you can’t help but feel the frustration and heartbreak of this fifth grader who is so completely misunderstood.

This novel needs to be read by teachers and parents, to help them understand the experience of a child who struggles with differences in the classroom, at home, or in social situations. And the kids who have always struggled to fit in will find compassion and companionship in the character of Gwen. This is an amazing story of finding yourself through difficulties, of finding your voice despite years of not being heard, and of finding hope when you need it most. I thought it was powerful and heart-breaking, and I hope that it finds a wide readership, because we need to realize these kids fall through the cracks all the time and they need our help.

Egalleys for Fifty-Four Things Wrong with Gwendolyn Rogers were provided by HarperCollins Children’s Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.

Gwen struggles with ADHD (although mis/undiagnosed through most of the book). She tries to do what others want her to do, but it always ends in failure. She just can't. Gwendolyn Rogers made me rethink how I handle my students with neurodiversity. Caela Carter does a great job using her experience in the ADHD/dyslexia world to name the feelings and obstacles some of our kids have to overcome. I loved Gwendolyn, I identified with the mom, and I hope I am more compassionate than Mr. Olsen. What a great reminder as a teacher and adult, that my students are trying even if it doesn't look like it to the outside world.

An updated Joey Pigza that deals more directly with the comfort of a diagnosis, the bias that exists against neuroatypical girls and people of color, and the limits of medical help and miracle cures. I will say that some of the therapist sessions come off a little dry, and that the opening chapters, perhaps even the first third, were particularly difficult to read, and I wonder if they might be not so much a mirror for kids who aren't neurotypical as a funhouse mirror, distorting things to show only the worst and most upsetting parts of their experiences, the most depressing versions of themselves; although Gwen's arc builds and reframes things really nicely, the negativity might be a little much for some readers. I’m not sure how the anthropomorphizing of emotion will play with actual young readers - I tended to find it a little awkward - but I did appreciate the robust cast of characters, and the side plotlines about addiction recovery, unconventional families, and the gender spectrum.

5th grader Gwendolyn Rogers is always getting into trouble. After (sneakily) reading her IEP report, she discovered 54 things that are "wrong" with her and no matter how hard she tries to control her Anger, she ends up causing problems. Her half-brother has similar issues but his ADHD diagnosis seems to make teachers treat him differently. This is a hopeful and touching story of Gwendolyn and her supportive but frustrated mom's journey to get a diagnosis and figure how "thinking differently" can be a gift not just a curse.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review.

Gwen wants to do better. Once she finds her IEP report she desperately wants to do better at the 54 things wrong with her, but she just doesn't know how. And it feels like everyone is against her. And it feels like no matter how much she tries, her brain is still going to crack and she'll fail.

Mixed in with the challenges Gwen was facing were a few subplots, how a friend was walking through the process of coming out as nonbinary, an estranged sibling relationship, and the challenges her mom faces as a recovering alcoholic and single parent.

Overall, I liked the book, but I think I would be more likely to recommend the book to fellow teachers than to a student. I think it provides valuable insight into the minds of our students.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this novel. This did not affect my review.

This was a great book about a girl with a mental disorder! Gwendolyn cannot be good for very long. She is always getting into trouble, and wishes more than anything that she could not. So she writes a list with all of the insecurities she thinks she has. When she finds out that her half brother, Tyler, takes a pill that makes his ADHD better, she wants to be diagnosed and to take a pill too. Will she be able to help herself be better?

This was a good realistic fiction book. All of Gwendolyn’s struggles were very realistic, and she was developed really well! Overall, a great book for any middle grade reader!

3.5 stars

Gwendolyn, the m.c. of this memorable middle grade novel, is filled with energy, enthusiasm, conflicting but powerful emotions, and a deep sense of self-loathing that comes from her past discovery of the titular 54 things wrong with her. From the intro to the conclusion, readers get a clear view into how challenging and tiring just existing is for Gwendolyn. Though she has noble intentions, she is compelled constantly by almost mystical seeming forces that cause her to react and behave in ways that do not match the structures in which she exists. Most readers who jump into this novel are going to (1) learn so much about Gwendolyn's thought process and likely (hopefully!) develop empathy for her and (2) question their understanding of folks with the various diagnoses discussed throughout the work.

Along with the well drawn m.c., readers benefit from a number of fantastic ancillary inclusions: Gwendolyn's mom, Dr. Nessa, Tyler (her half brother), and a variety of friends. It is impossible not to feel for Gwendolyn's mom, who is both an alcoholic in recovery and a single parent. She has a child who is awesome but very tiring, even to read about, and hearts may audibly break as readers consider her experience. Gwendolyn's friends are a lot of fun, and one overall wish I had for the novel was to replace some of the repeated details/nitty gritty of Gwendolyn's appointments with more friendly face time. Marty, especially, is a great character who needs more space in this work.

This is my second Carter read, and while I do feel like some of the balance could shift in the aforementioned areas, I also learned so much from the portrayal of these characters. I am excited to recommend this one to students and to folks looking to know more about the various topics explored within.

Thank you to the publisher for the e-ARC of this extremely emotional middle grade novel.

I loved this book. Gwendolyn's view of herself and the fifty-four things she thinks are wrong with herself are heart-breaking. I loved her relationship with her brother and her friends (she's not anti-social after all!). There was so much to love about this book. I hope lots of kids find the solace they need in her story, and hope too that lots of parents and teachers find a little more patience for the Gwendolyns of the world.