Worser

More about the book

A bullied 12-year-old boy must navigate a new reality after his mother suffers a stroke, altering his life dramatically. William Wyatt Orser, known as “Worser,” is a socially awkward middle schooler and a wordsmith, burdened by his ungrammatical nickname. He shares a comfortable routine with his introverted mother, a professor of rhetoric, filled with evening readings and minimal social interaction. However, everything changes when his mother becomes nonverbal after her stroke, and Aunt Iris moves in with her chaotic lifestyle, disrupting Worser's once-safe haven. Feeling lost and overwhelmed, he seeks solace and discovers the Literary Club, a group of fellow word lovers who meet in a used bookstore—an unexpected sanctuary. To his surprise, he learns that friendship can blossom by sharing his cherished Masterwork, an epic word notebook he's cultivated over the years. Yet, forging relationships proves challenging, and Worser must find the courage to rewrite his own narrative, striving to transform from Worser into Worder, as he seeks to create something lasting in his life.