I found the plot to be absorbing and emotionally engaging, making it a quick and intense read for me. The last thing he wants (and the last thing Alex wants) is for “that weird kid at school” to come and mess it up for him. Dan, the class bully, distraught over his older brother's absence due to a felony charge, frequently bubbles over in anger. It was a completely heartbreaking book for the most part since it was difficult to read about Alex and his struggles with OCD and the bullying.

This means we get to know both of them individually; we know that Dan begins to feel guilty, but he doesn’t want to show Sophie and the Georges that.This would be a wonderful story to read in upper KS2 classrooms and would appeal to readers who have enjoyed books about real-life issues such as Wonder or The Goldfish Boy. Dan is a bully and he bullies Alex who has difficulties with stuff, like not wanting to touch stuff unless he has his gloves on. Hachette Book Group is a leading book publisher based in New York and a division of Hachette Livre, the third-largest publisher in the world. When given the chance to really see each other, our differences become just a small part of who we really are.

Then a book like All the Things That Could Go Wrong comes along and I realise that's not the case at all, because this book is just that; well written, engaging, occasionally a difficult read (in a good way), but overall just a good story, full of heart, with two great characters at the helm.Being a Mum myself I always encourage open communication, and fine it so frustrating to hear that a situation cannot be communicated because XYZ may happen. Books offer children their own little private space, away from the influences of friends, school and TV.

Thankfully, I've never really been bullied, not like Alex, but there so was something so painfully real about the way it was written. It is not so much I wanted Alex to stand up for himself because truthfully I don't think it would have made much difference but he never told anyone these kids picked on him because he feared being branded a tattle-tale.Dan is angry about his brother and Alex has OCD and worries about everything; Alex is an easy target for Dan. All The Things That Could Go Wrong is an absorbing story about bullying and friendship crafted with the right balance of warmth and tension to engage readers in upper KS2.

But Dan really does grow as a character and it's probably one of my new favourite character growths I've read about. I thought Foster did a good job of trying to show the two sides of the situation, of both the bully and the bullied, and give them both some depth. You might think this is going to be a cut and dried story of the nice boy who's being bullied and the bad boy who's doing the bullying, but it isn't. All the Things that Could Go Wrong follows both Alex and Dan's stories as they just try to make it through the days.Stewart Foster carries off an astonishing feat of storytelling in this exceptional book’ Julia Eccleshare, lovereading. This is a book that tells two very different stories about Dan and Alex who both find the reality of everyday life a struggle. I think Stewart Foster has written a great book here, I couldn't put it down and read it in pretty much one sitting because I just kept wanting to know what was going to happen next. uk `A gripping and deeply moving book' Jamila Gavin, author of Coram Boy 'One thing we know about good books is their amazing ability to inspire empathy in the reader; to explore ideas and viewpoints that arise from experiences that are out of our own realm.