A Year in the Life of a Complete and Total Genius

Arthur Bean, a highly self-confident Canadian seventh grader, chronicles his school year through entries in his reading journal, email exchanges, and writing assignments in this humorous coming-of-age novel, Matson’s debut. Arthur hopes to kick off his career as a famous author by winning a citywide contest for young writers, but he is stumped for actual ideas. Meanwhile, Arthur’s teacher forces him to tutor his nemesis, Robbie. As the boys come to understand each other, Arthur sees that Robbie has some excellent story ideas underneath his poor grammar skills, though both boys have a crush on Arthur’s writing partner, Kennedy. Underlying these familiar middle-school dramas is Arthur’s grief over the recent death of his mother. Kennedy’s exuberant personality shines through her LOL-dotted, exclamation-point-laden emails, while Arthur’s writing makes plain his prickly brand of egotism (“Of course, there were a few poems that stood out in the sea of banality,” reads his review of an eighth-grade poetry reading). Arthur may finish the year as persnickety and opinionated as he started, but he also learns a few things about compassion, open-mindedness, and fairness. Ages 10–up. (Nov.)