The 14 Fibs of Gregory K.

I began The 14 Fibs of Gregory K. without too much information about the book, I normally have read a few reviews, read the flap on the inside cover, or had someone mention it to me, but none of this happened.  I saw the cover, was intrigued, and began reading.  I originally thought the 14 fibs were going to be lies…you know, a middle grade book about a boy who lies to cover up stuff going on like not getting his homework – nothing too dramatic or deep.  But, what came out of this story, I never would have expected.  This is a much deeper story about family, friendship, and understanding who you are as a person.

Gregory K. loves to write – short stories, poetry, you name, he writes it!  But the only problem is – his family is totally into math.   His dad is obsessed with math, so is his older brother, his younger sister is a genius and his mother is just as bad as the rest of them.  When Gregory’s math grade gets so bad that his parents come in for a conference, his (really awesome!) math teacher offers to help him get his grade up and Gregory decides to enter the annual Citywide Math Contest.

He’s not doing it for fun – he really wants to go to Author Camp this summer with his best friend Kelly, especially because she just found out she’s moving 144 miles away over the summer.  Needless to say, Gregory’s math teacher helps Gregory in math in an unconventional way – using writing to connect Gregory to math concepts, his friends help him along his journey, and his parents may just let him go to Author Camp (if they ever hear him ask about it!)

This was a very well written story about finding out who you are as an individual, what you like to do, how to interact with family, friends, and teachers and truly understanding that differences aren’t always so bad.  I really enjoyed this story and it will definitely me on my list as a recommendation for kids in the future.

Greg Pincus can be found on his blog as well as on Twitter!  Also, check out the cute book trailer on YouTube!

Title: The 14 Fibs of Gregory K.
Author: Greg Pincus
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine
Publication Date: 2013
Page Number: 240 pgs.