On Christmas Eve, Santa brought me something I really, really, really wanted: a starred review from Kirkus Reviews for Worser, the upcoming middle grade novel from My Favorite Author in the Whole Wide World, Jennifer Ziegler (who also happens to be my wife):

[T]his wonderfully layered story unfolds its many facets gently: finding refuge, garnering peer appreciation, questioning the way things were, and facing the toll of untreated trauma. … The author has developed her main character so well it’s hard to believe it’s not biography—but it can certainly pass as the most entertaining New York Times crossword artillery you’ll ever read. A lexical story of emotional evolution.

Worser (Holiday House) will be out in the world on March 15, and you can support independent booksellers by preordering a copy today!