Middle School – How I Survived Bullies, Broccoli, and Snake Hill

James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts's How I Survived Bullies, Broccoli, and Snake Hill is a summer-camp comedy for 11 year olds about a boy who gets sent to summer school in the woods.

What happens

Rafe Khatchadorian needs to catch up over the holidays, so his mum packs him off to Camp Wannamorra. Half camp, half school. His brainy sister Georgia is there too, but safely on the other side of the lake (thank goodness, as far as Rafe's concerned).

His cabin, the Muskrats, is full of boys with nicknames like Smurf, Dweebs and Bombardier. (You'll find out how Bombardier got his name. Brace yourself.) His bunkmate is Norman, a skinny, quiet boy who reads enormous books and has been called Booger Eater for six years.

Then there's Doolin and his gang from the Bobcat cabin. They chant "Dead meat!" at dinner, tape a Loserville sign to the Muskrats' door and cover the cabin in shaving foam. The camp boss, nicknamed the Dictator, has a rule for absolutely everything.

This is the fourth Middle School book, and it's very much like the others. Rafe talks straight to you and jokes all the way through. He slips into daydreams where he's a superhero sorting the bullies out, and he keeps telling you to look at the pictures.

It's VERY silly. Mushy broccoli, mosquito bites, poison ivy and a lot of toilet humour. But there's a kind heart underneath. Rafe can see that Norman only pretends not to mind the nickname because he doesn't think he can change it, and he can't stop himself plotting to help.

A couple of things to know. Rafe has a huge crush on his maths teacher, which is played entirely for laughs. And the gross-out bits really are gross.

The story picks up from Rafe's earlier adventures, so if your reader hasn't met him yet, start with Middle School, The Worst Years of My Life.

What to read next

If they want more from the same writing team, Public School Superhero is another funny school story. Kenny Wright is a quiet chess player who turns into fearless Stainlezz Steel, but only inside his own head.