Bigg School: Double Drama

Daniel Littleton doesn’t have an easy life at home. His dad is always working, his mum is ill and he has to look after his five-year-old twin sisters, so he can't always do what he wants. He doesn't have the latest iPhone, and his Xbox is broken. His best friend, Ollie, lives in a big house and always seems to get everything he wants; Daniel is glad he's part of Ollie's gang, but his friends are starting to notice that he doesn't have the money to join in with their activities.

Then Daniel is given a leading role in the school play - but he doesn’t want his cool friends to know as he thinks they will make fun of him. Daniel starts to tell lies, saying he's at a martial arts course when he's really at rehearsals. And soon, the lies are mounting up, and its only a matter of time before everything starts to fall apart around him.

Double Drama is the second instalment in Lisa Williamson's Bigg School series, and it is just as enjoyable as the first. Daniel is a lovely character, kind and funny but frustrated with his energetic little sisters who seem to get in the way of everything he tries to do. His mother suffers from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and is permanently tired, and his father is worried about losing his job. Daniel is relied upon heavily by both parents to help out at home and had a lot to cope with for such a young boy. He feels that however much he does, it is never enough.

Ollie is a complicated character, he seems at first to be a good friend to Daniel, especially when the two boys are alone together. However, when they are with the rest of their friends, Ollie is cruel to Daniel, making fun of him and calling him names. When Ollie infers that Daniel's mum isn't really ill, Daniel loses his temper and ends up in trouble at school.  We are reintroduced to Lola, the chief character in Ms Williamson's first Bigg School novel, who helps Daniel through this.

The author has a brilliant way of getting inside the heads of young children and highlighting the problems they face every day. Double Drama highlights the responsibilities a young carer and how important it is to share your feelings.

Daniel has the support of his sympathetic drama teacher, Ms Whitfield, who listens to him and gives him great advice. Daniel also gets support from the other members of the cast of the play - no one there laughs at him or judges him, and he blossoms in their company and becomes a happier and more confident child.

The novel has lovely cartoon-like illustrations by Jess Bradley, which perfectly complement the story. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to the next installment from Bigg School - I'm hoping that we hear more about Ollie, as I think he may have an interesting story to tell! Highly recommended.

256 pages / Reviewed by Beverley Somerset, school librarian.

Suggested Reading Age 9+