Pack of Dorks

Written by Beth Vrabel

Book #1 in the Pack of Dorks series

A kiss turns Lucy's world upside down, forcing her to choose between popularity and true friendship.

4.0/5 Goodreads · 856 ratings

240 pages· 39,887 words· Est. 5.5 hour read

$15.95Save 6%

In stock. Also at Amazon.

Bookroo's summary

Lucy thought a kiss would make her a legend, but it lands her in Dorkdom. As her world unravels, she faces a choice: join the cool kids or embrace her inner dork. Partnering with quiet Sam on a wolf project, Lucy discovers parallels between school and pack life. Will she conform or create her own pack? In a journey through bullying, loyalty, and self-discovery, Lucy learns that true strength lies in forging her own path, even if it means standing with the dorks.

From the publisher

Lucy knows that kissing Tom Lemmings behind the ball shed will make her a legend. But she doesn’t count on that quick clap of lips propelling her from coolest to lamest fourth grader overnight. Suddenly Lucy finds herself trapped in Dorkdom, where a diamond ring turns your finger green, where the boy you kiss hates you three days later, where your best friend laughs as you cry, where parents seem to stop liking you, and where baby sisters are born different.

Now Lucy has a choice: she can be like her former best friend Becky, who would do anything to claim her seat at the cool table in the cafeteria, or Lucy can pull up a chair among the solo eatersalso known as the dorks. Still unsure, Lucy partners with super quiet Sam Righter on a research project about wolves. Lucy connects her own school hierarchy with what she learns about animal pack lifewhere some wolves pin down weaker ones just because they can, and others risk everything to fight their given place in the pack. Soon Lucy finds her third option: creating a pack of her own, even if it is simply a pack of dorks.

Weaving tough issues, including bullying, loyalty, and disability, with a thread of snarky humor, family bonds, and fresh perspective, Pack of Dorks paints characters coming-of-age and coming-to-terms. Beth Vrabel’s stellar debut contemporary middle grade novel is sure to please fans of Jack Gantos, Elizabeth Atkinson, and Judy Blume.

Sky Pony Press, with our Good Books, Racehorse and Arcade imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of books for young readerspicture books for small children, chapter books, books for middle grade readers, and novels for young adults. Our list includes bestsellers for children who love to play Minecraft; stories told with LEGO bricks; books that teach lessons about tolerance, patience, and the environment, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

At a glance