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    A First Time for Everything
    A First Time for Everything
    A First Time for Everything
    Ebook321 pages24 minutes

    A First Time for Everything

    By Dan Santat

    4.5/5

    ()

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    About this ebook

    *Winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature*

    A middle grade graphic memoir based on bestselling author and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat's awkward middle school years and the trip to Europe that changed his life.

    Dan's always been a good kid. The kind of kid who listens to his teachers, helps his mom with grocery shopping, and stays out of trouble. But being a good kid doesn't stop him from being bullied and feeling like he's invisible, which is why Dan has low expectations when his parents send him on a class trip to Europe.

    At first, he's right. He's stuck with the same girls from his middle school who love to make fun of him, and he doesn't know why his teacher insisted he come on this trip. But as he travels through France, Germany, Switzerland, and England, a series of first experiences begin to change him—first Fanta, first fondue, first time stealing a bike from German punk rockers... and first love.

    Funny, heartwarming, and poignant, A First Time for Everything is a feel-good coming-of-age memoir based on New York Times bestselling author and Caldecott Medal winner Dan Santat's awkward middle school years. It celebrates a time that is universally challenging for many of us, but also life-changing as well.

    Praise for A First Time for Everything:

    "This is Santat at his best."
    ―Horn Book

    "[A] relatable story of self-discovery... the perfect balance of humor and poignancy."
    ―Kirkus, starred review

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateFeb 28, 2023
    ISBN9781250322098
    A First Time for Everything
    Author

    Dan Santat

    Dan Santat is a Caldecott-Medal-winning author-illustrator of many children's books. An honors graduate of ArtCenter College of Design, in Pasadena, he is also the creator of the Disney animated hit The Replacements. Dan lives in Southern California with his wife, two kids, and various pets.

    Read more from Dan Santat

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    Reviews for A First Time for Everything

    4.5/5

    87 ratings11 reviews

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    • 4/5

      Aug 21, 2024

      children's middlegrade/teen graphic novel, loosely autobiographical story of the author's 1989 trip to Europe in the summer before starting high school. Anxious about being bullied, and not especially good at talking to girls, Dan just wants to keep a low profile and avoid embarrassing himself, but finds that he actually has more friends than he realizes (his bullies are thankfully not on this trip) and he has a fun, memorable time exploring Paris and other touristy places in Europe and staying with host families with the other American 8th/9th graders from the Los Angeles and St. Louis areas.

      a sweet story, with beautiful, kid-friendly illustrations and lovingly rendered memories to sort of help one forget the less fun parts of being a middleschooler. I also loved the backstory with Dan's mom, suffering from lupus-related exhaustion most of the time, wanting her son to experience Europe when she can no longer travel easily.

      p.s. the QR code under the mix tape illustration on the dedication page leads here (spotify login required to listen) https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2qOWv0cDfGU2wwfDU7XtHT?si=ab11283a9dc14aaa
    • 5/5

      Aug 10, 2024

      Dan Santat is an award winning author of children's books, and now has written a National Book Award winner (category: young adults). This is a heartwarming story of an awkward young boy who has embarrassing experiences in middle school. Then, he is given an opportunity, prior to entering high school, to take a trip to Europe with other 13 and 14-year old students. While anxious about the adventure, he learns a lot about himself on this 3 week adventure.
      Told in a graphic novel format, this book is a very easy read. Often humorous, it is a real look at a young man coming of age.
      I loved it!
    • 5/5

      May 31, 2024

      I'm not sure what to say about this. It's an autobiographical coming-of-age story about a trip to Europe and it waa just very sweet. I liked it a lot and there just isn't much to complain about here.
    • 5/5

      Apr 26, 2024

      This book is less about avoiding the cringey disastrous moments and more about finding out in your soul that they don't matter. That those stories that shape us when we are young will still have some hold on us, but that getting out of your comfort zone can help put things into perspective in a beautiful way. I loved this book -- the travel, the awkward teens, the way things really do change when you get out the in the world, the adventures that become epic memories (some of them terrible). Charming, funny, sweet, authentic.
    • 5/5

      Jan 18, 2024

      Dan had a rough road in middle school, teased by peers and frequently feeling like an outcast. He's an only child, his mom is ill. His parents sign him up for the class trip to Europe during the summer.
      He deals with finding friends, his first romance, and changing his attitude and outlook.
      It's a charming, coming of age graphic.
    • 4/5

      Nov 21, 2023

      Best selling author and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat writes about his middle school class trip traveling around Europe in 1989. As he travels through France, Germany, Switzerland, and England, a series of first experiences begin to change him and his perspective on life.

      I can’t remember exactly why I grabbed this title from my library but then it won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, and I knew I needed to read it. I’m glad I did! It was such a fun read.

      When I was in high school, my French teacher took a group of kids to Paris every other summer for a week (it would be a part of the EF Tours, but just the Paris leg of the trip) so I could relate to a lot of what Dan Santat would bring up about the touring and such. It was also my first time traveling to a complete other country, halfway across the world, by myself.

      As the title implies, there is a first time for everything, and Santat experiences a lot of firsts on this trip in the novel: first time traveling without his parents, first overseas Fanta drink, first cigarette, first alcoholic drink, first kiss, first time sharing his art with someone. Through flashbacks the reader sees experiences that Santat had before, which make him hesitant to try something new.

      The art of this graphic novel is gorgeous and captivating. There are illustrations from all the famous European cities and historic buildings the students visited on their trip. Everything was clearly drawn and characters were different from one another where I was never confused as to who was who.

      Overall, I can see why it won the award. I can also see myself putting this in the hands of those who like travelogs and coming of age stories.
    • 4/5

      Nov 13, 2023

      In the summer between middle school and high school, Dan reluctantly takes a trip to Europe with a group of other students. In the freedom of being away from home, he explores this new independence by having a few adventures, making new friends, and even finding first love with another girl on the trip. But what will happen when the trip is over and they go back to their own homes?

      I really enjoyed this graphic memoir. Santat perfectly captures all of those adolescent feelings, both the good and the bad. I felt like I was there! Dan's adventures make for a satisfying reading experience, especially when coupled with his excellent drawings.
    • 5/5

      Jun 28, 2023

      Looking through my years of reading Dan Santat‘s books, I realize that every single one of them I have rated five stars. This does not break that streak. This book was fantastic. It was a love story. It was an adventure story. It was a story about finding yourself. And Dan does that all through an autobiography in graphic format about going to Europe for the first time while in middle school. There is so much heart and love in this book and that Dan added the pictures at the end and the envelopes with Amy with the letters going back-and-forth… It was just perfect. You come away from this book with a smile on your face, just wanting more and going man is this author good. He can tell a story not just to keep kids entertained and interested but to keep adults entertained and interested as well. This author already has a Caldecott Medal now he’s going for Newbery, and I hope he gets it.
    • 4/5

      May 29, 2023

      This graphic novel memoir recounts the author's 1989 group trip to Europe with other kids before starting high school. Coming from a small town in California as the son of immigrants, the trip broadens his horizons and grows his confidence. There he has moments of feeling the freest and most true to himself than he has felt in a long time. Backmatter includes his adult ruminations on the trip, updates on his travel mates, and photos. A hilarious and hopeful work--one can transcend the awful moments of adolescence by exploring beyond one's boundaries, figuratively and literally. Highly recommended for fun summer reading.
    • 5/5

      Jul 18, 2023

      What a wonderful graphic memoir, full of reality and strength. Dan Santat tells about his visit to Europe as a young teen. I believe he's about to be a 9th grader in this novel.

      Dan decides that life is better if he stays hidden, invisible, and quiet. He grows up in a small town outside of LA with parents who travel very little because his mother is ill. When they do travel, Dan believes that people will assume he travels alone because he's the only one ever in the picture. It's 1989, so there are no cell phones, only real cameras where you take the picture, wait to have it developed, and then see if the pictures are any good. Dan feels that people treat him badly, which is why he wants to be invisible, giving several examples of his life and friends. There's also a rather clueless teacher and ineffectual principal. He's now about to leave junior high, but before he does, he is studying abroad. He gets to the airport and discovers who else is going. Thankfully, there are two new boys along with the girls from school who give him a hard time. There are some new girls as well--one is particularly intriguing.

      For twenty-one days Dan explores Europe--and his own identity. He learns that dealing with people by choosing invisibility creates a narrow life. He visits Paris where he discovers Fanta. The history of Fanta is very interesting--another reason to read this memoir! A trip like this is a big wake up call for kids this age. These kids are around 13 years old, maybe 14. They have two chaperones and a tour guide for 21 days. Also, they have never dealt with money. Learning how to budget on a trip in a country where money and payment customs are completely different gives them great life lessons and a chance to grow up quickly! They journey on to to Switzerland where Dan experiences more embarrassing moments. We all hate these moments of growing up. They are terrible. In flashbacks we learn about some of the kids on the trip and how Dan is a really nice kid. Maybe they aren't being mean to him. Maybe he's over-reacting? That's for you to decide. Then it's on to Germany where the students live in a house with a German family for one week. The last two stops are Vienna and London. It's in these last three places that Dan takes a chance and finds a girl he likes and who likes him back. Sadly, when the trip is over--and it's almost over--they'll have to part ways.

      The memoir is so true to life. People do act exactly like these kids do, which seems so mean. Are they being mean or wanting him to join them in their sense of humor? What will shock you is the freedom they have in Europe. They are about to be freshmen in high school and they run all over Europe alone. My brother did a trip like this in the 80s and he had a great time. Times have changed, and I don't think trips like this exist anymore because of cell phones and social media. It's a great look at a time in history as well as the timeless look at what it means to be comfortable with who you are. Finding confidence to be ourselves take more time for some than others, but Dan learns lots of life lessons that direct him on a more exciting course. I highly recommend reading this graphic memoir.
    • 4/5

      Apr 5, 2023

      Based on the author’s middle-school trip to Europe in 1989, and if like me, you mostly travel via books, you’ll probably appreciate the variety of countries this one visits and the beautifully illustrated landmarks depicted in each city, the perfectly rendered center court of Wimbledon ranked high among my favorites.

      I would have loved a little more about Dan’s parents but I am an adult reader so maybe that’s why I was curious about them, other than that I don’t have a lot of complaints about this one.

      In addition to the armchair travel and eighties details like Fanta sodas and John McEnroe, there’s the sweetest little romance, at its most adorable whenever she rested her head on him. There’s also a well-constructed character arc for Dan as he struggles to feel more comfortable in his skin and put embarrassing moments behind him which makes for a relatable read whether you went to Europe in middle-school or not.

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    A First Time for Everything - Dan Santat

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