The synopsis makes it sound hokey, and it is, a little, but entomophagy is close to my heart so I had to give it a try.

And I was pleasantly surprised! Rebecca Petruck aptly realized that, while there are many "friendship" books for girls, there was a dearth of books on the same subject for boys. And while I don't believe in "boy" and "girl" books, it's true that kids prefer to read about people similar to them, and female friendships are different from male ones.

Will's dedication to Darryl, even when he's clearly in the wrong, is admirable, as is his skill to self-police (even though I'm not sure how realistic it is that he'd be constantly expecting Eloy to be less like them? I've never had this experience, though, being Mexican myself [and my uncle's name is Eloy!], so I can buy that it might be a thing for kids to realize that they expect people of different backgrounds to act differently). His friendship with Simon and eventually Eloy is realistic and warm, and his enthusiasm for his science project is great.

It's definitely true that entomophagy is a very foreign subject for Americans, and that Will needed to make it approachable in any way he could, though I can see Eloy's frustration as well. The characters were well thought out, as were the conflicts. Very much recommended to middle schoolers. ( )

FROM PUBLISHER: Will didn’t plan to eat a stinkbug. But when his friend Darryl called new kid Eloy Herrera a racial slur, Will did it as a diversion. Now Will is Bug Boy, and everyone is cracking up inventing insect meals for him, like French flies and maggot-aroni and fleas. Turns out eating bugs for food is a real thing called entomophagy. Deciding that means he can use a class project to feed everyone grasshoppers, Will bargains for Eloy’s help in exchange for helping him with wrestling, but their growing friendship only ticks off Darryl more. Will may have bitten off more than he can chew as crickets, earthworm jerky—even a scorpion—end up on his plate, but insects are the least of his problems. When things between Darryl and Eloy heat up, Will wrestles with questions of loyalty and honor—and learns that maybe not all friendships are worth fighting for.

Includes a signed letter from the author.