Tom Gates is Absolutely Fantastic [at Some Things] (Tom Gates #5)

Pichon, L. Tom Gates is Absolutely Fantastic [at Some Things] (Tom Gates #5)
October 16th 2018 by Candlewick Press
Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central

The big event in Tom's world is the upcoming School Activity Trip, but he might not be going! He forgot to turn in the permission slip, and even when he gets another one, it is lost in the morass of his room. Luckily, his mother saves the day and sends him off with substandard wooly jumpers and way too many bananas instead of decent snacks! He has an odd assortment of roommates, including Marcus, who shoots his mouth off about how great and brave he isn't, but is really just whiny and annoying instead. There are lots of fun activities like raft building, and competitions with another school. Of course, the best activities are the forbidden ones, like snacking after lights out and being silly. Still, the trip is a success and Tom is glad that he finally got organized enough to go... even if he loses his teddy bear and everyone on his bus finds out he brought one.

Like Peirce's Big Nate, Tom is an imminently likable and tremendously typical middle school student. He means well, but still can't remember to pack his own pajamas! He's obsessed with snacks, but in a world where you can buy caramel wafers at the corner Tesco, who wouldn't be? Tom is also very British, with his gym kit, rubbish bins, and even the whole concept of the School Activity Trip! The last time I took middle school students on a trip that stayed even one night away was 1989!

The other characters in the book are slightly one-dimensional; Tom's father is always claiming to want to stay fit but sneaking biscuits, his sister Delia is often mean and snarky to him but ends up saving the day when he forgets to mail in an entry to a t shirt design contest, and his teachers a bit waffly and ineffectual. I do appreciate that even with Marcus, Tom is understanding and not mean. This makes a big difference between this and the US Wimpy Kid series.

The hand-lettered font and copious pictures will appeal to fans of Stick Dog and Charlie Joe Jackson, and many readers will use this book as an arguing point to get a wall of their room painted in black board paint just like Tom, so they can doodle all over a wall. All of Tom's exploits are amusing, humorous, and pure fun to read. I am not overly sad that this series is fourteen books long in the UK!