“I’ll set a record so ridiculous, so amazing, that my name will be there until the apocalypse,” he thinks. Inspiration strikes when he notices “The Boykinville Board of Beasts,” a list of the school’s record holders in strength and speed competitions. It’s clear that Otis won’t let misfired science projects, detention-earning snafus, or even a bullying mean girl kill his spirit. In his debut novel, author/illustrator Tiefenthaler brings likable Otis to life with witty first-person narration and kidlike pencil drawings that reflect a pre-adolescent boy’s observations and flights of fancy. Otis has high hopes even though he’ll be “a lowly bottom feeder” in a building where 12th graders rule. A move to the town of Boykinville is an opportunity for Otis to reforge his image, if only he can “break out of Mediocreland” and do something to impress his new classmates. Otis “O.K.” Kalshwonkee is small for his age, younger than most seventh graders, and afraid that his initials are fitting for someone who is cursed “to be average at everything” for the rest of his life. A spirited 12-year-old thinks he’ll never be anything but average until he recognizes his own gifts in this witty and wise novel for middle schoolers from a first-time author/illustrator.
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