This is a book I will be recommending to all middle grade readers. It deals with anxiety, self-harm, & bullying.

This is a great book, one I immediately recommended to our school librarian. Featuring a central character with an unsettled home life, it is devastating that this character’s fiction is some children’s reality, It is for that reason that I will implore children to read this book. It is a story of hope beyond devastation, of finding friendship, of telling the truth against all odds.

Thanks A Lot Universe was an enjoyable middle grade coming of age novel about family, foster care and anxiety. The internal dialogue of anxiety with Brian was relatable and genuine.

Chad Lucas’s Thanks a Lot Universe captures middle school perfectly. Told in alternating points of view, Brian and Ezra share all the ups and downs and everything in between of these middle school friends. Through these two points of view, you are able to really empathize with the characters who are experiencing so much that is out of their control, from families who fall apart to understanding who they really are inside. The honesty and bravery of Brian and Ezra make this an important read. Thank you to Abrams Books and NetGalley for providing a DRC.

4.5 stars. I’m a sucker for books about real emotions in middle school, especially when it’s boys learning to express sadness and angst, while also figuring out tough life challenges. Gabe and Brittany were my favorite side characters. I love their mentorship and the positive portrayal of teenagers with emotions, especially Gabe.

I also really loved Chad Lucas’ writing style, and felt comforted the entire time I read this book. Books with 2 POVs can be difficult sometimes, but he makes the shifts seamless, while still firmly defining his characters’ personalities. In his acknowledgments he cites Gordon Korman as an influence, and honestly, I loved reading this as much as any Korman book I’ve read.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC. I’ve written this review 4 times already (but Goodreads keeps deleting it) so while the first 3 reviews were so much better, this one should really just say “GO READ THIS BOOK” and that I’ll definitely be purchasing it for my library collection.

Brian and Ezra are completely different, or so it seems from the outside. Brian struggles with anxiety, which is worsened when his dad flees from arrest and his mom overdoses, landing Brian and his brother in foster care. Ezra has lots of friends and is a respected basketball player who appears to have a perfect life from the outside, but who is grappling with coming out and with the way kids like Brian are treated at school. When the boys' worlds collide they have to decide whether to trust one another. This is a compelling, intense, and funny upper middle grade debut novel that many readers will relate to.

This was honestly one of the best middle grades I've read in a long time. Some of my issues with middle grades reside in the fact that the author sometimes treats the kids like they're...dumb. Like kids can't make connections or theories or judgements themselves. While I realize this book is for kids and not adults, it's one of the first middle grades I've read in awhile that doesn't treat kids like they can't read past a fourth grade level.

I really loved how serious this book got. There's a lot of topics here that kids go through and they're all dealt with carefully and with empathy. Especially the depiction of foster care and coping with loss. Brian's reaction with stress is to shut down, which is a common reaction to big change or stress. It was so good to see the steps he needed to take to healthily cope. Not only that, but the foster care happens so fast it's like whiplash and that's what it's supposed to feel like, especially for Brian. Plus having a criminal for a father but still loving him despite the laws and the complicated relationship that comes with that like.....Brian's storyline was so achingly good. Plus the anxiety rep in here is like god tier.

Plus Ezra's struggles with his friends and losing friends. Middle school is such a tumultuous time for most people. I remember losing and gaining friends like crazy, so Ezra's struggle with his own friends and finding his footing was so true. I'm also always a sucker for found family tropes too.

There were a few things I didn't like though. I'm really not sure why middle grade authors are like compelled to put in Harry Potter references. Like for what reason?? There's 3 or 4 here and it just assumes that this audience has read 20 year old books and also I hate JKR because she's actively funding bills that harm transpeople so I'm not gonna be happy about mentions of her work. I just don't think it was necessary any of the times those references were used.

Thanks to NetGalley and ABRAMS KIDS for an egalley in exchange for an honest review.

Set in Halifax Nova Scotia, this middle-grade novel featured two of the most loveable male protagonists-Ezra and Brian. Chapters alternate between their perspectives amidst issues related to family, bullying, and sexuality. I read so many YA books from a female perspective that it was nice to change it up.




Publication Date 11/05/21
Goodreads review 25/05/21



* Reviewed on Instagram and Facebook as well*

This is a beautiful and poignant read. The narrative is chronological, with perspective alternating between Brian and Ezra. The two boys already know each other, but they aren’t really friends. The same catalyst that exacerbates Brian’s anxiety also leads Ezra to reach out to Brian. Their friendship proves beneficial for both boys, as they learn to rely on each other.

They have basketball in common, but their personalities are different, which is probably why they haven’t hung out before. It’s not easy for Brian to trust people—especially after everything that happens to him at the beginning—but taking a chance on Ezra proves to be exactly what he needed.

I appreciated the way that Ezra’s friends dealt with his coming out. I’ll keep my thoughts vague to avoid spoilers, but needless to say, he wasn’t shunned/mocked like he worried he would be. I know this isn’t the case in every community, but it’s nice to see kids accepting each other for who they are.

On that note, I also liked the way the book portrayed Brian’s anxiety. This is something that affects so many kids nowadays, and so it was great to see the people around Brian reacting with empathy and understanding when Brian started to get overwhelmed.

I would absolutely recommend Thanks a Lot, Universe. This is a wonderful middle grade read that will also appeal to younger YA readers who enjoy realistic fiction. There are so many positive messages in this book about family—both biological and found family—as well as friendship and relationships and so much more. This is an amazing debut, and I’m looking forward to reading more from Lucas in the future.

13 year olds, Brian and Ezra are both dealing with 7th grade, bullies, and life. Ezra is questioning his sexuality. Brian is facing a family that is falling apart for multiple reasons. Together, they learn to be friends and support each other while dealing with multiple complex challenges. These challenges include foster care, depression, panic attacks, and attempted suicide. Characters are true to 13 year olds. Plot is a well-developed story about friendship and finding your place and supports. Readers who enjoy realistic fiction, dealing with difficult challenges, and friendship will enjoy reading this book. 4 stars, Grades 5 to 9.

Please note: This was a review copy given to us by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No financial compensation was received.

Thanks a Lot, Universe is a dual point of view story about common middle school themes : not fitting in, growing apart from childhood friends, learning to speak up for yourself and finding out who you really are.

Brian suffers from an anxiety disorder that makes him unable to make or really maintain friendships. Despite being on the basketball team, there's only one classmate he feels comfortable talking to. His dad despairs of his lack of social life, while his mother seems to understand him better. After the worst thirteenth birthday on record, Brian must put all of dad's lessons into effect in order to survive.

Ezra is a musical genius. He knows Brian from basketball, but they don't really hang out together. Ezra has his core group of friends from elementary school, including best friend Colby. But lately, Colby has been spending more time with popular kid Victor, who's kind of a jerk. When he begins spending more time with a new girlfriend, Colby becomes unbearable. What do you do when your closest friend seems to be growing apart from you? And what if you start feeling like no one will ever know the "true" you?

I couldn't put this book down. Lucas' writing explains so well exactly how it feels to be thirteen and to be overwhelmed by all the things that seem beyond your control.

This is the story of a family being torn apart, and the children left to find their courage, strength, and selves along the way. An excellent story! Every middle school child (and their adults) should read this book!

The pace is perfect to move along quickly as a read aloud in classrooms, and the story is gripping and lovely. We readers root for ALL the characters throughout their struggles.

Recommended for upper-elementary/middle school readers.

This was a really moving story. It was fairly slow-paced and took me a while to get into, but it ended up being worth sticking with it. Good character development; I grew attached to the main characters over the course of the book. 4.5/5 stars.

5 stars = Outstanding!

Loved this dual perspective story and both of the kids who tell it. There's a lot of serious content here including a suicide attempt by one character's parent that pushes this to the upper end of middle grade (10+), but the material is handled really well for this older age range. Highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for chance to read this!

I really enjoyed this. I thought this was primarily going to be about a boy coping with his family in disarray and being in foster care, but really that was just part of it, as it was also about friendship and a crush on another boy.
That sounds like it's a lot of issues crammed in--foster care, father leaving in trouble with the police, mother having mental health crisis, typical adolescent friendship changes, plus being gay. But really-it wasn't. For one thing being gay wasn't a crisis, which I appreciated. It was more of a very typical "how to handle a crush" perspective, combined with "how will my friends react when they know I'm gay?"
One of the things I really liked that I don't see a lot of in books was the boy circle of friends. Why hasn't it occurred to me that boys also have text groups with their friends like I do? For the most part the boys (and definitely the older teen characters) were super in touch with their feelings and almost always knew just the right thing to say. And maybe that's not 100% realistic, but it also felt really nice to read.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3997290767

This is a fun middle grade read that would find itself at home in any collection. I'm also quite enamored with the cover art.

Often times, middle grade can skew on the younger side and will pull some punches. Thanks a Lot, Universe is not one of them and it shines as a result.

A dual perspective narrative, the book follows two 7th grade boys as they try to navigate how everything seems to change the second you become a teenager. However, the focus isn’t on school and the drama of being a middle school student. Instead, Brian deals with anxiety, family problems, and feeling like a complete outsider. Ezra tries to be a friend to Brian while figuring out how to keep his other friendships intact and also tell them that he’s gay.

This book has so much heart and hope. It is a reminder that these serious life events happen to everyone, not just adults. This book will be a helpful hand to any child who reads it who carries too much weight and given more responsibility than a child should have.

The writing of this book was delightful. The conversations of 7th grade boys from having real emotional moments punctuated by the most ridiculous humor? That’s real. And seeing these kids talk like kids do was so refreshing. I think many middle schoolers will see themselves in this book and what a good thing that is.

Thanks a lot, Chad Lucas. This book is gem.

5 Stars

A sweet story about mental health, friendship, and being true to yourself. Brian and Ezra are both very likable characters. I particularly enjoyed that the “coming out” plot was not the center of attention, instead focusing on flawed family dynamics many kids will be able to relate to.

I hadn’t read a 5 star book in a long time and this one completely caught me by surprise because I didn’t expect to love a middle grade book so much. The author didn’t underestimate its readers’ intelligence and tackled some important topics while formatting everything in an understandable and digestible way.

Both Brian and Ezra were such interesting and opposite characters. Watching their friendship bloom was lovely. Aside from the main characters, the diverse cast of supporting characters were all unique and interesting in their own way. Shoutout to Gabe and Brittany who were amazing role models for Brian and Ezra.

I know the book is a great standalone but I loved it so much that I wouldn’t mind having a YA follow up that would pick up a few years after this one.

I’m definitely keeping an eye out for Chad Lucas next book!

Thanks Netgalley and Abrams Kids for the digital copy in exchange of my opinion.

As I see more and more middle schoolers dealing with social anxiety, panic attacks, and depression, this book felt so believable. I read the first half in one sitting, needed my box of tissues at my side, and resented that I really couldn’t stay up all night reading.

Brian is turning 13, and the adults in his life are failing him and his younger brother. Brian has social anxiety. Middle school is a minefield.

Ezra wants to be better friends with Brian and is considering coming out. Ezra is more adept socially, but frequently suffers micro aggressions from his friends.

Chad Lucas alternates between the boys’ points of view beautifully. His depiction of middle school life is spot on. I was pleased that the teacher (Mrs. Clelland) and police officer (Sergeant States) were positive influences. This book is on order. I can’t wait to add it to the middle school collection. I will be highly recommending it to teachers and students.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.