My Life as a Joke (The My Life series #4)

Janet Tashjian, Jake Tashjian (Illustrator)

$8.99

Publication Date: April 11th, 2017

Publisher:

Square Fish

ISBN:

9781250103888

Pages:

288

Usually received by store in 2-5 days.

Description

From popular middle-grade novelist Janet Tashjian comes another hilarious installment in the My Life series, with illustrations by Janet's son, Jake Tashjian.

Derek Fallon discovers all the angst that comes with being twelve—he just wants to feel grown up, but life gets in the way with a series of mishaps that make him look like a baby. He passes out during a worm dissection in science class, falls flat on his face in gym class and gets a fat lip that causes him to lisp all day, and his plans for a monster-truck party turn into a bouncy house disaster. Why isn't being in middle school as great as Derek imagined? Thankfully, with a little help from his friends—and, ironically, a Toys for Tots fundraiser—things seem like they could start shaping up at last.

My Life as a Joke by Janet and Jake Tashjian is a Christy Ottaviano Book

“Readers will connect with likable Derek and his efforts to improve himself that don't ever go right . . . It's sure to be a hit with fans of the previous installments.” —School Library Journal

"A kinder, gentler Wimpy Kid with all the fun and more plot." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review on My Life as a Book

Don't forget the rest of the My Life series!
My Life as a Book
My Life as a Stuntman
My Life as a Cartoonist
My Life as a Joke
My Life as a Gamer
My Life as a Ninja

About the Author

Janet Tashjian is a middle-grade and young adult novelist who’s been writing books for children for over two decades. Her first novel Tru Confessions was made into a critically acclaimed Disney TV movie starring Clara Bryant and Shia LaBeouf. The Gospel According to Larry series is a cult favorite and Fault Line is taught in many middle and high schools. Her bestselling My Life As a Book series is illustrated by her son, Jake. They also collaborated on the Einstein the Class Hamster series.

Janet collaborated with fellow Macmillan author Laurie Keller on the chapter book series Marty Frye, Private Eye. Janet currently lives in Los Angeles and made her new home city the setting of the Sticker Girl series, which details the adventures of Martina who overcomes being shy with the help of her magical stickers that come to life.

Jake Tashjian is the illustrator for the My Life As a...series, including My Life As a Ninja and My Life As a YouTuber. Jake also created and illustrated the Einstein the Class Hamster series. He collaborates on his novels with his mother, author Janet Tashjian. He has also illustrated several books for the author P.T. Evans.

Fun fact: Jake is a visual learner. When Jake was in elementary school, he used to draw his vocabulary words on index cards. This later became the inspiration for the main character, Derek, in the My Life As series.

In 2016 Jake co-founded Workshop 2.0, a non-profit foundation to train and hire other young artists on the Autism Spectrum.

Jake grew up in Massachusetts and currently lives in Los Angeles. He is an avid surfer and filmmaker.

Praise for My Life as a Joke (The My Life series #4)

“Readers will connect with likable Derek and his efforts to improve himself that don't ever go right . . . It's sure to be a hit with fans of the previous installments.” —School Library Journal

"Give this to kids who think they don't like reading. It might change their minds." —Booklist, starred review on My Life as a Book

"A kinder, gentler Wimpy Kid with all the fun and more plot." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review on My Life as a Book

"A fast-moving plot and relatable protagonist make this stand-alone sequel a good choice for boys who, like Derek, would rather reach for a TV remote or game controller than a book." —School Library Journal on My Life as a Stuntboy