Dan Santat’s A First Time for Everything
Description
How much could a trip to Europe before High School change your life – apparently a lot more than anyone would expect.
Middle School is rough on everyone. The recipient of bullying and embarrassment in front of the whole school, Dan is no exception. When his parents arrange for him to join a school tour group to Europe the summer before High School, he is unenthused. And when he realizes that the three other kids that he knows in the group he wouldn’t readily describe as his friends, the probability of the trip going well drops even more.
But as kids from other schools join the group, the dynamics begin to change. And as the tour steps into full swing, more changes are on the way. Changes that, for better or worse, force Dan well out of his comfort zone.
Disclosure
I borrowed this book for free from our library system, it was provided for my personal use. There was no agreement with the author, publisher, or any third party that I would publish a review. The following review is unsolicited, unbiased, and all opinions are my own.
Review – Spoiler Free
If you read my book review of Squire & Knight, another graphic novel, you already know that I’m always on the lookout for a good graphic novel to read with our young kids. After more than a few bad eggs, I’ve learned to do a bit more than just a flip-though before bringing home a new one. A First Time For Everything caught my eye because it was new to our library; the cover looked like it could pass mustard, so I gave it a once over. And while it wouldn’t be something I’d read with our young kids yet, it seemed interesting to me.
A First Time For Everything walks through a real time and a real trip when the author, Dan Santat, learned to like himself, and some of his tumultuous journey to get there. It is part memoir and part fiction, drawing heavily from actual events in his life with a few parts changed to build the story.
The first scene alone is enough to communicate what the vibe of the book will be, and of what Santat’s Middle School experience was. After a few brief pages to place the reader in Santat’s childhood, it launches into a scene of grumpy Middle Schoolers in a school auditorium just having had to sit through a speaker wax on about the dangers of drugs. With 15 minutes before they can leave, Dan is called on to come up and practice his speech for an upcoming tournament – in front of the whole, grumpy school. You know where this is going, I know where this is going, Dan knew where it was going.
Following that knockout scene of an introduction, A First Time for Everything continues to be gut wrenching and sad and comical in a way that only the remembrance of times in an American Middle School can be. There’s even a perfect quote on the back cover from a review by Jarrett J. Krosoczka: “A hilarious, beautiful, and captivating memoir about the cringeworthy catapult into adolescence.” Summed up perfectly.
My only true complaint with A First Time for Everything is the illustrations of some of the eyes – when pupils point in different directions when they’re not really meant to. It’s not permeated throughout the book, but there were enough of them in the beginning that had me wondering: nobody caught that before publication?
Aside from that, I’ve got all good things to say. Dan’s relationship with his parents, told mostly through flashbacks, is sweet and goofy and endearing in a way that leaves me wishing for more of those moments. And the scenes where his confidence shines through in a situation or he finally finds some joy, are palpable and wonderful. The cringeworthy Middle School moments are so relatable it’s hilarious and painful at the same time, and it pokes at how ridiculous those middle-schooler-trying-to-fit-in moments are in America. A thing that many of us have wondered at ourselves.
The back matter of A First Time for Everything had pictures from Santat’s actual trip to Europe, which only made the book that much more relatable. And Santat leaves the reader with a call to live life to its fullest, and to know yourself through it.
Overall, I was very impressed with A First Time for Everything. It was funny and sad and hit so shockingly close to home, while wrapping up with a beautiful call to action from Santat. I’d recommend it to Middle Schoolers struggling with the soul-crushing reality of American Middle School, and to Adults for a nostalgic laugh or some sort of relatability about their own experiences, or even just someone looking for a read that ends with joy and hope.
Quote
We all have only one life to live, so why not live it to its fullest? I encourage you all to try something new, whether it be grand or small. Try a new food, learn a new skill, do something that scares you. It’s okay to be embarrassed. Be patient with yourself. Go at your own pace, but most importantly, go find adventure.
It may be good.
It may be bad.
But in the end, you’ll know yourself better, and at the very least you’ll have a story to tell.
A First Time for Everything, Santat
Quote
“Until recently I used to hang out with certain kids because being around them made me seem cooler to others and not because I actually liked them.”
“Sounds exhausting.”
“It totally was, and I didn’t like that about myself.”
Amy and Dan (A First Time for Everything, Dan Santat)
Ratings
- Quality of Writing – 4
- Plot – 3
- World Building – 3
- Characters – 4
- Ease of Reading – 4
- Pictures/ Illustrations – 3
- Appropriate for Intended Age – 3
- Overall Enjoyment – 3
- Final Rating – 3.5 (Actual: 3.38) – Liked It/ Really Liked It
Want to learn more about the numbers I use for rating, and the qualities I’m thinking about when writing a book review? Check out my post How I Rate and Review.