From the Bookshelf of Mock Newbery 2026…

Louder Than Hunger

John Schu

Start date: August 1, 2024

Finish date: August 31, 2024

Discussion: Newbery 2025

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Newbery 2025

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* Final Round - 2025 Mock Newbery Award
By Kristen · 26 posts · 149 views

last updated Jan 20, 2025 07:44AM

Round 1 - 2025 Mock Newbery Award
By Kristen · 24 posts · 114 views

last updated Jan 12, 2025 10:17AM

What Members Thought

Dec 02, 2024 Whitney rated it it was amazing

If you liked Wintergirls, you'd love this one. It's told in verse. It's about a boy who has anorexia, and how he is working to overcome it. It's beautiful!
...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Sep 27, 2024 Beth Given rated it it was amazing

Jake loves weekends with his grandma. He loves singing along to songs from musicals. He loves reading aloud at the nursing home. But Jake does not love himself. In this novel in verse, Jake relates how he's let his inner voice stamp out his confidence. He struggles with an eating disorder. He wishes he would disappear.

This novel in verse is a fast read (don't be intimidated by that page count!) -- and it's poignant and moving. I really loved that most of this book was spent on Jake's healing, sh ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Aug 09, 2023 Margo Jantzi rated it it was amazing

My heart has expanded by reading the Edelweiss ARC of Louder Than Hunger by John Schu on #NationalBookLoversDay! This heartprint book deeply motivates me to pass on the love to family, students, and friends.

1 like · Like · see review

May 18, 2024 Sarah rated it it was amazing

Shelves: middle-grades

There's so much to love about this realistic fiction novel in verse. It's an emotional read because Jake, a middle schooler, is really struggling with an eating disorder and we desperately want him to pull through it. As we follow his healing journey, we get to know him better and better and love him more and more.

Any book that makes me cry automatically gets 5 stars - ideally I'd give it 6 for how important it is. I'd like to see it in every school library, and not just for the students. ...more

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Apr 09, 2024 Mary Lee rated it it was amazing

Shelves: verse-novel, self-esteem, ocd, 2024, eating-disorder

Such an important book! But you don't have to believe me, believe the all-star lineup of blurbs on the back: Jeff Kinney, Jason Reynolds, Jasmine Warga, Erin Entrada Kelly, Dav Pilkey. Front blurb: Katherine Applegate. And the forward? Kate DiCamillo. We love you, Mr. Schu, and support the risk you took in writing this story. Jake's story. Your story. A story that will help and heal so many. ...more

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Oct 08, 2024 Dest rated it it was ok

Shelves: audio, people-with-disabilities, sad, poetry, bullies, tween

I did not like this book, but I'll start with the positive.

The subject matter is important. Middle school can be a very rough time. Bullying can be deadly. Like Genesis Begins Again and Starfish, Jake's story is emotionally brutal. Books like these are necessary, especially when written from the heart by authors who have lived to tell the tale of how they survived. I think it's brave to write so openly about your struggles, particularly for someone like Mr. Schu who is famous in the kidlit worl I did not like this book, but I'll start with the positive.

The subject matter is important. Middle school can be a very rough time. Bullying can be deadly. Like Genesis Begins Again and Starfish, Jake's story is emotionally brutal. Books like these are necessary, especially when written from the heart by authors who have lived to tell the tale of how they survived. I think it's brave to write so openly about your struggles, particularly for someone like Mr. Schu who is famous in the kidlit world for being a great school librarian.

So the main reason I did not like this book is the same reason I didn't like Starfish and Genesis. I
have a hard time with emotionally brutal books, particularly books about children who hate themselves. It's hard for me to make it to the end of the book, even when I know it will have a hopeful ending.

Admittedly, I probably should not have listened to the audiobook at 2x speed. I probably should not have been reading The Great Cool Ranch Dorito in the Sky (another book about disordered eating) around the same time. It really messed me up. I was a wreck!

When I calmed down and thought about this book with a Newbery lens, i.e. looking more at the literary style and quality, I can't say I'm rooting for it to win awards. Big chunks of the book felt like a beginning reader because the vocabulary and structure were so simple and repetitive. The only parts of the plot that I really liked were (view spoiler). Those parts woke me up! For the majority of the book I just felt sad and wanted it to be over.

Supporting characters felt somewhat flat. For example, Jake's dad is an absent father for most of the book and then (view spoiler). Kella felt a bit like the Platonic ideal of the friend Jake needed. The staff at Whispering Pines were mostly forgettable for me.

Finally, I have a random note on coincidences in kidlit. There is another novel in verse out this year about a kid who connects to the same Emily Dickinson poem Jake recites over and over. Are You Nobody Too? ...more

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Jan 06, 2025 Anna rated it it was amazing

This is a powerful book about a middle-school aged boy wrestling with anorexia, depression, bullying, OCD, and the feeling of never being good enough.

I felt it powerfully illustrated mental disorders and was ultimately hopeful.

Such a good read. 4.5 stars rounded up.

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Apr 04, 2024 Shari (Shira) rated it really liked it

What a moving book. I got completely lost in Jake’s story. I cried. I scolded. I encouraged. Finally, I stood up and cheered. This book is a strong reminder of who is walking into your classroom. It’s a reminder to keep your eyes open and be vigilant.

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