While I absolutely love wrestling and found it interesting how sibling relationships change over time, this reads a lot younger than middle grade and it was very cheesy in some places.

Fun book for wrestling fans about a kid who transforms into a wrestler by chewing a magic piece of gum. Ollie, best friend Tamiko, and older brother Hollis are big fans of the struggling local wrestling promotion Slamdown Town. His mom is a referee and former wrestler who lost the championship to the evil Werewrestler. Ollie would love nothing better than to see Werewrestler's championship reign end. When he finds the magic gum, he becomes Big Chew, the newest and most popular wrestler in Slamdown Town. Can he take down Werewrestler, avenge his mom, and keep Slamdown Town from closing for good?

While the book has a fun fantasy element, it is also grounded in reality, Kids will relate to Ollie and Tamiko's fun friendship and love of gaming, as well as his difficult relationship with Hollis. The satisfying conclusion shows the value of putting the needs of others before achieving your own dreams. And while kids might realize that real-life wrestling matches are scripted, they will enjoy the kayfabe atmosphere of Slamdown Town and the ingenious ways Ollie/Big Chew wins his matches.

This is a fun story for ks2/3 students to enjoy. The opening pages are funny and engaging which is always a good thing in children's fic. The friendship between Ollie and Tomiko is really nice and I really like the trust and respect between Ollie and his mum too. So often kids fic. Uses conflict in the family home to further a storyline, so it was nice to see a boy opening up to his mother and listen to her advice the way Ollie does.
I wouldn't think the series would be hugely popular in UK schools simply because wrestling isn't a 'big' thing here compared to other sports, but that aside this was a nice book for fans of the sport.