Better Nate Than Ever

I knew upon getting Better Nate than Ever that the book was going to be cute, with the author well versed in the world his subject lives in and the cover art great, but I had no IDEA the level of preciseness that this book would achieve when talking not only about theatre kids, but kids in general AND their families and friends! Yes, the Broadway stuff is truthful and funny, but the family dynamics are what really hit home for me and that was not what I was expecting. Federle takes the grown-up issues kids deal with but often are not discussed out to the open and brings them to light. Not only would I suggest this book to any theatre-lover, I also think it is a great tool to learn how to reconnect with your family and presents real life situations in an adorable color to help lighten events that can be hard to handle and process. Thanks @TimFederle for your hard work in creating this sparkling gem. I give this TWO THUMBS UP AND A TRILLION STARS!

Aspiring Broadway star, Nate Foster, stole my heart. His optimism, enthusiasm, wit and ambition are inspirational. His love of musicals gets him harassed by his peers and ignored by his parents, but he does not let that stop him from studying and learning all of the best songs from all of the best plays. When his best friend tells him there is an open audition for ET The Musical in NYC the same weekend his parents will be out of town, Nate sees it as destiny. He sneaks away from his small town and hops a bus to New York 100% convinced he will win the starring role. Nate's adventures and misadventures are comical, touching and a little scary, but Nate perseveres seeing every encounter as a learning experience that will make him better prepared for stardom. Even middle grade readers who have never seen a musical will cheer for Nate and his success.

Having guffawed my way through Chapter 1 of BETTER NATE THAN EVER, I simply couldn't put the book down until I was finished. Whether oohing and ahhing over the big city alongside Nate or cheering on his one-of-a-kind best friend or even feeling a pang of pity for his mother, I absolutely loved this novel from start to finish. Tim Federle's eighth-grade voice is so spot-on I begin to wonder if he isn't a closet eighth-grader himself. I've known more than a couple of boys like Nate, and he warmed my heart thinking of them. Add in a crackling writing talent and laugh-out-loud lines on every page and I'm hooked. One of the best middle-grade novels I've read--yeah. EVER.

Everything in this book-- everything that happened, every bit of setting, every character introduced-- was colored by a voice possibly stronger than any voice I've read before. And the narrating character was so full of spunk and determination, you couldn't help but like him.

This is a truly incredible book. It fills what, to my knowledge, is a pretty large void in adolescent literature: novels that employ themes that both straight and gay/questioning youth can identify with. What's more, the book is a page turner. I read it in two sittings! And it is also laugh out loud H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S! But the BEST thing about this work was made apparent as I closed the back cover upon finishing. Wiping tears from my eyes, I said to myself, "Some 12, 13 or 14 year old kid who's being bullied is going to read this somewhere in America. And he or she is going to choose to stay with us rather than committing suicide -- because he will have FINALLY seen himself here in the pages of this book." I wish there was something like this when I was growing up. It Does Get Better, kids. And Tim Federle's book takes us through an amazing adventure showing just one of the ways it does.

Better Nate Than Ever, the first novel by Tim Federle, is a wonderful realistic fiction book about a boy in love with Broadway so much that he decides to sneak into the huge city of New York to try to get the role of Elliot in the all-new "E.T.: The Musical." In New York, Nate goes on a "salsa crawl," borrows a jacket from a charity bin for the homeless, reunites with his long-lost aunt and auditions for the big role. Although this book may have some foul language, the story is still a fabulous tale. I recommend this book for kids between the ages of 10 and 15 assuming they are okay with reading some bad language. I rate this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Review by Luke N., age 9, Greater Los Angeles Area Mensa

NOTE: This book contains fairly graphic language and homosexuality.

So funny!! So sweet!! So hysterically and brutally honest about New York City and Show Business!! This book would have changed my life (for the better, of course!) had I stumbled across it in my youth. Kids (and many adults) will most certainly take away some valuable life lessons from the courageous, relentlessly funny, and relatable Nate Foster. And not for nothing, but as I was reading, I found myself just as wrapped up in the lives of the supporting characters (most notably Aunt Heidi and Nate's wise-cracking BFF Libby), secretly hoping to read of their own exploits in future spin-off novels!! It was also so much fun to experience New York City for the first time (all over again) through Nate's eyes - remembering the endless possibilities and uniquely eccentric oddities that only NYC can offer!!!!

Inside Broadway from a kid's-eye-view - NATE hits every mark with heart, great warmth and hilarious true-to-life detail. A backstage adventure you could only know from being there - or reading this book!

Such a heartfelt protagonist! Nate is trapped in an agonizing awkward stage and his candor and cleverness feel like a middle school confessional. Filled with big laughs and big feelings, this book is a great, entertaining read.

Such a heartfelt protagonist! Nate is trapped in an agonizing awkward stage and his candor and cleverness feel like a middle school confessional. Filled with big laughs and big feelings, this book is a great, entertaining read.

I ADORED this book. It's inspiring, funny, heartwarming and packed with adventure and intrigue. Tim Federle writes about friendship, family, vulnerability, curiosity, passion and dreaming big, all with great care and brilliant detail. His characters and settings are so brilliantly drawn that I feel as if I'm right there in each moment. I've fallen in love with this cast of characters and didn't want it to end. I sure hope there is a sequel in the works. Bravo on a first rate debut!!! (and this book is for ALL ages - truly)

Nate Foster, the protagonist of Tim Federle's extremely delightful Better Nate Than Ever, is everything you wish you could have been as a kid -- hilarious, plucky, resourceful, and able to make dozens -- if not hundreds -- of sly Broadway jokes. This book is for the kid you wish you could have been when you were Nate's age and every kid who wants to pirouette out of his or her comfort zone right this very second. Read this, love it, and pass it on!

This book is a sweet, hilarious page turner from start to finish. I bought this for my Glee/Pitch Perfect obsessed teen daughter, and ended up breezing through it after she had done the same. And with all the vampire, zombie and so on out there, how refreshing to read a book that doesn't have any! Just a cool kid, following his star, doing his own thing. I loved this book.

Better Nate Than Ever is hilarious, accessible, and completely captivating. I can't wait for my son to read it and feel encouraged to dream big and laugh loud. A terrific book. Hopefully Tim Federle is writing a sequel as we speak. Encore!

'Better Nate Than Ever' is fantastic! Hilarious , smart, and extremely touching. If you have a passion for ANYTHING, you will love this book. You will fall head over heels for its hero Nate (Harry Potter and Eloise, you have company) . Author Tim Federle has created an instant classic for all ages and this is his debut novel! Amazing. Get ready world. Buy this book and say that you discovered him when!

Stay in on Valentine's Day and read Nate instead. See the world through Nate's delightful and quirky gaze. Remind yourself why there's no substitute for dreaming with your eyes open and loving with your arms spread wide to the world.

This is a beautiful book. Cleverly and well written. Smart. Funny. Captures all the drive and joy of the stage struck kid and all of the angst and natural beauty of the coming of age. Highly recommended for kids probably 10 and up. It's a book that makes a difference.

I LOVED this book! This Broadway-hopeful hero is so engaging and relatable and the way his story is told made me laugh out loud. I'm hoping for a sequel and can't wait to share with my friends' kids.

Better Nate Than Ever is a fantastic novel for anyone who loves the world of Broadway and who has ever dreamed of being cast in a Broadway show. It is such a treat to follow Nate as he crashes an audition for a brand new Broadway musical in NYC and to get an inside look at what a Broadway audition is like! Tim writes with such great detail and he has an incredible sense of humor that you can't help but fall in love with Nate! Once you start reading this book, you won't want to put it down!

This book is not appropriate for children. It features language such as the word that starts with an "f" and rhymes with "bags", used to describe a certain group of people. The story features a lot of this topic. Perhaps this is appropriate for a mature teen, but I urge each parent to consider at what age to introduce these topics.

While the style fits the intended age group well, the content is very adult. I think the only reason there are so many 5-star reviews is that the book is pro-homosexual and no one wants to be seen as intolerant. The style and content simply do not mesh.

My eleven year old read this book. He pointed out some passages to me that he found disturbing and once I read them, so did I. This led me to do some research on the book and the author. Of particular interest to me was the Lambda award for LGBT youth. If you do not want your child reading stories that affirm this lifestyle, then skip this book.