James is an average 10 year old boy with average grades and an average life. One day, he decides he wants to be the most average person in the world. He suddenly finds himself in the land of Average where they are looking for a new king. To become king, he must complete a quest, so he sets off to lands such as Accusia, Uppity, Flatterlander, and others. He’s joined on his quest by a scapegoat, an optimist, and a pessimist. Together, they try to help James achieve his goal of being completely average.

This book was nice. Nothing special, but not terrible either. Rather average, haha. It was very reminiscent of The Phantom Tollbooth with its different lands and clever wordplay. It starts off a little slow but does become more engaging as the story moves along. My main negative is, given the age of the protagonist, this seems to be a middle grade novel, and I think it might be a bit too deep for that age range. For sure most of the name puns would go over their heads, but even some of the lessons James learns might be a bit much for, say, an 8-year-old to grasp.

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ebook.

This is a fun story, filled with puns and wordplay. I enjoyed reading it and following along with the adventures that James has. It would definitely be a great read-aloud for a class that enjoys fun with language.

My thanks to NetGalley and Bunny Moon Enterprises, LLC/Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

I was SUPER excited to see that this book was being offered on NetGalley, as I absolutely LOVED "Orbiting Jupiter" by the same author. (Seriously, that book is so good, you should stop reading this review and read that book. It's short, I'll wait.)

This one however...it's his first book and it has that sort of feel to it. He has good writing chops, but they aren't fully developed in this one and you can tell. Which made me sad, because I absolutely LOVED "Orbiting Jupiter". (Seriously, go read it. Go, shoo!)

This is rather depressing and ends right when it starts to get real and the stakes are high.

SPOILERS FOLLOW. YE HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Long story short, kid with no dad and mentally and emotionally abusive mother finds a way into this fantasy land that is very Xanth-esquish. (The author says he was inspired by The Phantom Tollbooth and you can tell.) He goes on a quest, makes friends, then realizes that he isn't the good for nothing his mom has always told him he is and that she is the damaged and hurt one. He decides he wants to leave his new found world of fantasy and friends to tell her that he loves her, no matter what, to try to help her heal. The the book ends! Ta-da!

Wait, what?? I want to see how he deals with the real world now that he has had his epiphany. How has becoming self-aware changed him and how will it change how he interacts with others? Will he become successful? Will he be treated the same, but not care? WHAT HAPPENS NEXT, I NEED TO KNOW!!

Not a bad book, but not what I was expecting. 2 stars, because I LOVE "Orbiting Jupiter" (go read it!). This one, not his best, but not horrible. I will still read everything this man has written. Because "Orbiting Jupiter".

(Have you read it yet? :D )

James is a straight-C student, always lands in the middle when told to line up by height, and is never picked first or last for teams. Nothing about him sets him apart from anyone else. This makes him the perfect candidate to become the new king of a land called Average. But before taking his throne, he must first find the former king and ask why he did something so unusual as to run away from Average. Joined by a literal scapegoat, a professional optimist, and a pint-sized pessimist, James sets out on his quest to find the old King of Average. For the most part, this middle-grade novel seemed to be a tribute to Alice in Wonderland, including meeting strange people and creatures who show up just in time to help the characters on their next leg of the journey. While it was an enjoyable, quick read, some of the characters names (for example, the scapegoat is called Mayor Culpa) seemed a bit too on the nose, as though the author thinks the readers need every metaphor and symbol spelled out for them.

My name is James, and my mom's always telling that I'm a big disappointment and have ruined her life. I want to prove I'm the most average kid in the world, but I came upon a talking goat on my way home one day! I followed him through a hedge and found myself in a whole new world, The Land of Possibility. Now, somehow, I find myself possibly being the next king of the Land of Average. I must complete a quest, of course, by finding the former king and discover why he left. Am I average enough to rule a whole kingdom?

If you enjoyed reading The Phantom Tollbooth, you'll love this one too. There is A LOT of word play for you to think about, and you may miss much of it. Characters' names, names of kingdoms and cities, and words in conversations have literal and figurative meanings. Ever heard someone say "A little bird told me"? The bird is in the book, and James's goat is a scapegoat, taking all the blame for him. James journeys into a land of possibilities and pessimism, but he finds it difficult to live with average expectations. The adventure of quests and helping others kind of makes you take risks and become un-average. How many people in the real world are afraid to stand out and be different? It's not always easy going against what is "normal", but go ahead, take a chance and care about other people. Make it a better place.

Don't we all wish for attainable goals? So if high and lofty goals seem too high and lofty, why not try to be average? James, just an average kid, decides to make this is goal in life - to be as average as he can be. After the little birdie overhears him say this aloud, he is whisked off to another land where Mayor Culpa, the mayor of Average, and a committed scapegoat, tries to persuade him and to become the next King of Average. To be king, James must complete a quest and maintain his averageness while doing it. However, James is faced with the reality that always being average might be a quite high and lofty goal. With Mayor Culpa and several new friends by his side, James sets out on his quest so he can become the King of Average and learns many new things about himself along the way.

Gary Schwartz's premier novel is interesting. The author enjoys playing with words and language, so students who enjoy the use of the English language will enjoy the adventure.