Ezra Exposed

This middle grade chapter book tells the story of Ezra, a boy who gets his first cell phone at the end of 5th grade and makes some pretty big mistakes when it comes to safe internet practices. To combat some teasing he shares a picture of his butt with a friend at school to prove he doesn't have a "beaver butt", but after the picture gets spread around through texts to other students in his class, things quickly go from bad to worse. This book is innocent, yet tells a very important message about sharing pictures through text and social media, and the importance of privacy and safety on the internet. The book also shares the range of consequences that can come from making these kinds of choices, from losing privileges to police involvement to being fired for sending inappropriate texts at work. The story also looks at bullying and the importance of talking to safe adults. As far as sexual content, the book uses the word butt a lot and does describe the aforementioned incident where a nude butt picture was shared but there were no other graphic details. There is also a reference to a girl's chest saying something like "some parts weren't still skinny" and a boy tapping his chest. There are also a few sex ed type lessons, including a vague description of what the students were seeing such as "male private parts", reference to hair growing on private parts and the word vas deferens. Finally the boys find out that while they were learning about male reproduction the girls were given maxipads and discussing their periods. I think this book would be appropriate for students in the grade 5-8 range, but I do wish that there was a little less description of some of those sex ed topics. Middle grade students are so easily freaked out about these topics and while I totally agree with the messages about sexuality and privacy, I do think the author could have been a bit more subtle with what the students were learning. I would love to read this book to my class to teach about internet safety and bullying, but I think I would have to censor some of it for my grade 3 students. I would recommend it more for later middle grade or middle school teachers, but I really think the messages are important for students as young as mine! Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book!

Damn...why do all the embarrassing middle grade stories remind me so much of my own childhood? Some parts are totally cringey... getting so hyper about phone and social media. That's totally me. And the voices that told me that I was so addicted to texting and social media still echo. And I cringe while reading this book. It should not be this relatable!

I find the writing really fun and the main character relatable funny! It's a quick read and the plot lives up to the blurb. I appreciate this!

And yes, after all the drama things do end well for Ezra!

Absolutely waiting for the book to come out.

Thank you, Blackstone Publishing, for the advance review copy.

I love the cover so much!

This was a funny , lighthearted read with a crucial message underneath.

Unlike our parents,who probably got their first computer or cell phone or first SM account in high school or college , kids right from elementary school are already familiar with the internet and some of them already have social media accounts at 10/11 years old . That exposes them to a lot of dangers online.

Ezra miller is your average fifth grader who likes telling jokes and making friends laugh . He feels lonely though , because his peers are on social media . He creates an instagram account and quickly gains likes and followers . One day he posts a photo of his butt on a dare and it quickly goes viral. He is sent packing on a trip to the principal's office . His counsellor, parents and principal make him aware of the dangers of posting inappropriate photographs online as what's online stays online for a long long time . This is an important lesson to learn as we are unmindful of how online activities can sometimes be negative to our reputation .

Highly reccomended

Ezra is a very relatable middle school kid. He is the last one in his social group to get a cell phone and is quick to create a social media presence for himself and gain the attention of the “cool” kids with his ”butt” posts. Unfortunately, Ezra has some tough lessons to learn about internet safety. This story is entertaining and educational at the same time. I couldn’t put it down! It is on the top of my Must Buy list for my middle school students. Thank you Amy Feldman and Blackstone Publishing!

This was a great book for upper elementary and middle school kids. It is a quick read that kids can really relate to. It also teaches a great message in a way that I think will hit home. I hope to read this as a read aloud with my class and help them understand how important it is to be careful what you post online.

This is an amazing book. It lays out what can happen with the internet. Ezra is a kid that most kids can relate to---not perfect, but not a bad kid. He makes a little mistake, and it slowly grows into a big problem. It will show the kids what happens if they forget what goes on the internet stays on the internet. This will work much better than a dozen lectures.

10yo Ezra finally got a cell phone! He's gone all of 5th grade without one and feels left out of a lot of the fun his friends have had - texting, chatting, sending pictures to each other. One of the first things Ezra does with his phone is send his friends a funny picture of a couple of chicken nuggets breaded together that look like a butt. The picture gets shared and before long, other kids are following Ezra's account. He keeps finding things that look like a butt, but before long Ezra takes a photo that turns his world upside down. He's in real trouble and so are the kids who received it.

Feldman's debut is a great story. 10-year-olds learning about sexting seemed super young to me, but, unfortunately, they aren't. Ezra Exposed presents the topic in an age-appropriate, kid-relatable way. It's funny, engaging, a great read, and a perfect conversation starter.