say it ain’t so

Say It Ain’t So by R. Kyle Beswick is a middle-grade novel currently on submission to publishers.

It’s 1998 in Jefferson City, and stuttering 11-year-old Tyler Brennan dreads starting middle school. He’s forced to read aloud in class and order lunch in the cafeteria, his broken words like magnets for the Mortal Kombat-obsessed bullies known as the Fatalities. Tyler just wants to cheer on Mark McGwire’s home run chase at his grandpa’s retirement home and obsess over Weezer’s blue album in peace.

Then a new student named Holly Walker is bullied for showing her enthusiasm for everything—including her love of Weezer!—and Tyler faces a choice: protect himself by staying silent, or help Holly navigate the social landmines of sixth grade.

When Holly runs for class president against the Fatalities, Tyler slips her strategies to win over their classmates that only a marginalized observer like him could offer, but on one condition: She can never reveal their friendship to anyone at school, or else they risk total social banishment for her and the Fatalities’ wrath for him. As Holly’s popularity grows, Tyler discovers she won’t let him stay invisible forever, and he’ll soon learn whether life is better watching from the bleachers or playing in the game.

When election day comes, Tyler might find his voice after all.