I enjoyed this story with all the characters within. The main character was Jonas.

Jonas is a twelve years old boy. On Halloween night he did something that someone saw. That someone is writing notes and leaving them at Jonas locker. Jonas doesn't know who is doing this and want to know why. Jonas doesn't want anyone to know what he did that night.

This was a fun story to read or listen to. It had action, adventure and suspense. It had a few giggles within.

I received a complimentary audio copy via Netgalley. I listened to the audio and the narrative did a good job. This is my honest unbiased opinions.

One thing a social group is going to do is react when someone feels violated. Often the violator does their best to cover up the violation, even if they feel ashamed. This is the dynamic of the characters in this story and we don't really see how the rest of the group or the victim - of candy theft - have decided to handle this violation until later in the story. While I liked that we get a sense of the protagonist hiding something for much of the story and this feels true to life, I would've liked time spent from the victim's perspective.

I couldn’t really get into this book, but I do like that it seems to teach an important lesson to children.

Because of the title and cover of Confessions of a Candy Snatcher, I was expecting something geared toward ages 8-12. However, due to some more mature content and themes, I’d feel more comfortable recommending this book to younger teens. Unfortunately, because of youthful the cover, I feel most teens wouldn’t pick it up.

I listened to the audiobook version of Confessions, and I’m wondering if I’d have liked it better if I read it in written formate. The narration of the zines wasn’t descriptive enough, so I was often left feeling confused. Also, I appreciate that it seemed to touch on heavy topics like consent, bigotry, and divorce, but none of those topics seemed resolved at the end. I was left wondering if the anticipated resolution occurred in one of the under described zines, and that’s why I missed it. I’m very hopeful that the physical copy makes much more sense and wraps things up better than the audio version.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
#ConfessionsofaCandySnatcher #NetGalley

This read wasn’t at all what I was expecting – based on the title, premise, and cover, I was thinking it would be more of a lighthearted read that centered around the actual candy snatching and the shenanigans that ensued. Instead, this was a darker read that focused on several heavier topics: the recent split of parents who are still trying to figure out their dynamic, growing apart from childhood friends, guilt, and the anger that comes from these things, just to list a few.

I did enjoy the exploration of the topics. I thought it was done well and added much to the characters, though it might make a tough read for younger readers. The characters were well written and diverse – I loved how unique everyone was, and how, despite the many characters, it was easy to keep track of them all based on their excellent characterization. Also, I always appreciate when home school gets a good rep, so extra points for that! The inclusion of zines was also interesting and added a unique element to this work.

There were many difficult and important topics brought in this work, including consent, physical violence, discrimination against queer folks, and guilt. But when I finished the read, it felt that there wasn’t much closure with these topics. In a book for adults, that’s one thing – I do like when not everything is wrapped up in a neat and happy bow. But in a book targeting younger readers, I think it’s more beneficial to provide lessons or positive examples than to leave it open ended and/or not addressed adequately.

Just a heads up, there is a slur and some other discriminatory/nasty comments targeting queer folks, though they were said by a bigoted character so it is plot relevant. Due to this and the heavier topics, I wouldn’t recommend this for MG readers. It’s more YA, but maybe on the younger end of YA. DO NOT read this expecting a Halloween read; DO read this if you want a character-driven read about a 12-year-old boy struggling with the themes mentioned in the second paragraph. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did a phenomenal job; however, I believe there are illustrations as well as sections of the book that are set up like a zine, so keep that in mind when considering reading versus listening. My thanks to NetGalley and RB Media for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was not quite what I was expecting and I found it hard to follow. Based off the cover, I was expecting more of a fun book. This was not that. I love Halloween so I was drawn to the book for that reason, I was confused for sections of the book and it didn't hold my attention like I was hoping.

Audiobook Review - This book has what could be a cute and fun premise, but I just couldn't into it. I'm not clear if this is mean more for the middle grade or middle school set. If the purpose is to teach that actions have consequences the delivery is so so. There are much better middle grade books out there that teach this same lesson.

This is around 3.25 stars. (For me) a story from the perspective of a 12 year old African American was unique.

Listened to the audio book and the narrator (Ruffin Prentiss) did a fantastic job.

He was involved with candy snatching at Halloween and his conscious is getting the best of him ... plus normal middle school complications and parents that are separated.

(Debating between 3 and 4 stars, but ultimately decided to round down. Pro - narration; Con - some homophobic comments, slipping several opportunities at honesty with respected teachers and parents.)

Not too keen on the ending, which was a little weird..

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to the advance listen copy of Confessions of a Candy Snatcher by Phoebe Sinclair. Thank you to publisher RB Media for approving my NetGalley request. The advance copy is in exchange for an honest review.

Confessions of a Candy Snatcher is an engaging book about a middle school boy who thinks the worst thing he’s ever done occurred during Halloween night when he snatched candy. What occurred during the candy snatching remains a mystery to the reader, as Jonas navigated the fallout of that night.

I really wished this had more Halloween elements… That being said, this story explores boundaries, family dynamics, and friendships. I really annoyed the narration. You could sense the urgency, the anger, the confusion coming from Jonas.

There were some moments that had me questioning the writing and the intended audience of the book. Is this how 12-year-old boys act? I’ve never been one and haven’t been around any since my own middle school days, if I’m being honest.

The bigger conversations (consent, for example) were not completely addressed which left the ultimate message of the story muddled. Why introduce an important topic if you’re just going to reduce it to a few sentences or a short conversation?

As someone who listened to the audio, I feel like I lost out on seeing the illustrations so I’d reccomend going with a eBook or physical copy (paired with audio is fine!) for that full engagement.

If I see the word Halloween, I click and that's that.

I must confess, I have no idea who the audience for this book was meant to be.

Jonas is 12 and has a long-standing history of snatching candy from unsuspecting trick or treaters. This Halloween, something goes wrong and soon, he starts receiving anonymous notes in his locker that suggest they know that he was the culprit of the physical altercation.

Telling his story through a zine that disseminates stories about the worst things that kids have ever done, you get snippets of a story that... truly start to add up to feel like something far more insidious than what actually occurs.

I struggled with the writing quite a bit here. It was a little vague in places and hard to follow. The best parts of the book were the "zine" pages that broke up the chapters.

I really wasn't pleased with the casual unchallenged homophobic comments, ie. "you take it up the butt", which I guess is probably standard for boys this age, but it made me struggle on how I'd categorize this story.

This definitely isn't a feel-good Halloween story that the cover portrays and I'm a bit bummed about that and it feels like the story that was trying to be told about physical boundaries, safety, maturity, etc. was a bit too much of a mature message to be discussed through a 12 year old who's simply snatching candy.