Parents' Guide to

King Dork

By Matt Berman, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Dark, funny coming-of-age with lots of mature content.

Book Frank Portman Coming of Age 2006
King Dork Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

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age 16+

Based on 2 parent reviews

bookwormforever
bookwormforever Adult
July 28, 2011
age 14+

Amusing, and boys will enjoy it

Very amusing. I listened to the audio version, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I liked the protrayal of high school and I even learned a little bit about rock and roll. That being said, it is a book narrated by a teenage boy and has some swearing and discussion about sex, and a scene where the main character fondles another. The book also portrays what it is liked to experience mild bullying.

This title has:

Great messages
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
demonkiller
demonkiller Parent of 17-year-old
February 27, 2011
age 17+
i like it bc its get to me and its a fun and great book.

This title has:

Too much swearing
Great messages
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Tom Henderson is a decent kid on the fringes of the high school from hell -- though it may, in fact, be just like most high schools. He's persistently tormented (by boys) and humiliated (by girls), and the teachers and administrators are little better. His father died years ago under mysterious circumstances, his mother is a distant self-medicator, and his stepfather a well-meaning but inane aging hippie. Tom's only solace is his one friend, Sam, and their pastime of making up imaginary rock bands. Then he finds a set of books, including Catcher in the Rye (which everyone in the world except Tom seems to love) left by his father. Could these books contain clues to both his life and death? Maybe -- or maybe not.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (2):
Kids say (10):

This debut novel by East Bay punk rocker Dr. Frank has so much going for it that it may be the literary find of the year. First, it's laugh-out-loud, still-chuckling-10-minutes-later funny, the kind of clever, sardonic, intelligent humor that will have your teens calling up their friends to read passages out loud. The humor, though, is set in high relief by the story's depth, complexity, and sophistication. There's a realism here that goes far beyond most books, either for teens or for adults. All the characters, major and minor, are more than meet the eye, and the layers of their personalities don't always fit together as smoothly as they usually do in fiction. Their lives are as complex as their personalities.

Very few ends are neatly tied up, but unlike most books that try this, it isn't frustrating at all -- in fact it makes perfect sense. Interspersed with all the plot intricacies are Tom's, and the author's, musings, bits of philosophy, rants, and outsider observations, often wickedly funny and always interesting and thought-provoking. Together it all makes for a delightful read.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about coming-of-age stories. What does that term mean -- and what are some classic examples? How does King Dork compare to Catcher in the Rye, which features heavily in this book? Does either story resonate more with your own high school experience?

  • A movie is being made based on this book. Will you see that movie? Who would you cast in Tom's part? If you were making the movie, what would you change, if anything?

Book Details

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