The Fingertips of Duncan Dorfman by Meg Wolitzer

Young Llama Thoughts
  • Adventurous
  • Christian Friendly
  • Easy Reading
  • Humerous
  • Youth Appropriate
Overall
3.7 Llamas

Review

Did you know that you can learn how to do an activity from reading about it in a book? It’s true! My mom read about riding horses and kayaking (or maybe it was canoeing?) and now she can do it. From this book, I am now under the impression that I could possibly play Scrabble and not lose to bad. (I don’t think I would win, but I know a lot of the rules and a ton of words!)

This book is about three different kids playing Scrabble. Duncan, your everyday below average kid except he has the ability to read with his left hand without looking, April, the only non-jock in her family just trying to get them to notice her, and Nate, a genius Scrabble player who is only doing it for his dad. These three kids must work together while each tries to win the national Youth Scrabble Tournament, and hopefully reach their goals.

This book was pretty good. It was a very cute story, the characters were well thought out, and the overall theme of the book was great. But it felt like it was missing something… Maybe it’s because I’m a 20-year-old reading a book meant for 8-year-olds, but it felt like the plot line was everywhere! Problems got solved instantly, new people would just pop up randomly and the book just jumped into new places at weird times. It was written ok, but this is a book that stuff just happens and you don’t know why.

Overall, this book was pretty good and I think kids 8 and up would enjoy it. But it did feel rushed and slightly random at times. It was a novel I enjoyed, but not one that is my favorite. I hope you all have a Hat-tatsic day! -The Young Llama Reader.

Pros

  • A really fun story about friendship and scrabble!
  • A cute book for kids 8 and up!!!

Cons

  • The plot line is kind-of all over the place…

Friendship, family, and high-stakes Scrabble come together in this compelling novel from a bestselling author

Duncan Dorfman, April Blunt, and Nate Saviano don’t seem to have much in common. Duncan is trying to manage his newfound ability to “read” with his fingers. April is striving to be accepted by her family of jocks. And Nate is struggling to meet his father’s high expectations.

But when a Scrabble Tournament brings them together, their stories intertwine. Driven by competition, drama, and just a touch of magic, the story will have readers flying through the pages, anxious to discover who will be the real winners . . .

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