Parents' Guide to

Donutheart

By Matt Berman, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

Funny, moving, loving portrait of a neurotic boy.

Book Sue Stauffacher Friendship 2006
Donutheart Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

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What's the Story?

In this sequel to Donuthead, Franklin is now in middle school. He's still obsessed with germs and safety, is starting to notice girls, and has to deal with public bathrooms.

Franklin and Sarah continue to help each other. Sarah guards the bathroom for him, and Franklin helps her with skating and school. But things aren't going well in Sarah's life, and she and her deadbeat father begin hinting that they won't be staying around much longer.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

Try to ignore the hideous cover and the silly, pointless title; Sue Stauffacher's characters are so lovingly drawn, in all their quirkiness, that the reader falls in love with them, too. In real life, someone like Franklin might be irritating and weird, but as the author allows us inside his head, his quirks and obsessions become endearing, and readers can easily see past them into his large heart.

In fact, heart -- as the title indicates -- is what this book is about: Franklin's heart, enlarging as he learns to see beyond his own worries; the hearts of the adults, who see what is happening to Sarah and are powerless to do much about it; and Sarah's heart, held so tightly protected, that opens like a flower when she skates. It's also about the author's heart, which she shares so generously; and, most especially, about the reader's heart, which will be touched and expanded by this delightful, funny, poignant -- but never sentimental -- book.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Franklin's obsessions. All of them are based in science and reality -- so why aren't they reasonable? Why is getting him to do unsafe things seen as beneficial?

Book Details

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