About This Book:
What happens in the group chat stays in the group chat… until it doesn’t.
Virginia Vaughn just wants to fit in with her super-popular friend group. That means she doesn’t let them know how much she loves the library, she never speaks a word about her massive crush on tragically unpopular Grayson, and she says nasty things she doesn’t actually mean. But only in the group chat, so it’s harmless, right?
But when she has a blowout fight with her clique—specifically, with the Queen Bee herself—her mean texts are posted online for the entire school to see! And, suddenly, Virginia has no one but her cat to talk to.
Cue “Knight Errant,” a mystery boy at school who texts Virginia by accident—and who quickly becomes her closest confidante. Though they send messages back and forth for hours every night, Virginia doesn’t want him to know which classmate she is (because then he’ll connect her to the mean texts ALL OVER THE INTERNET). She likes him, but she really likes Grayson, too. Can she find the strength to tell Knight who she really is? And will Grayson—who has become her only ally at school—give up on her when the awful things she’s said about him are finally posted?
Confessions from the Group Chat is the second middle-grade romcom from New York Times bestselling author Jodi Meadow (Bye Forever, I Guess; My Lady Jane, now a streaming series). Sweet, funny, and authentically messy, this is an ultra-cute story about middle-school misbehavior, innocent first love, and the inner life of a repentant mean girl.
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
*Review Contributed By Connie Reid, Staff Reviewer*
Spot On and Relevant
Confessions from the Group Chat wins all the praise. The middle-school drama, coming-of-age, social media pitfalls and trends, and first love were spot on and relevant. Virginia Vaughn has it all, 3 besties and an engaging social life where they make posts for Scrollr that have gained a following. Their group chats underline how cool they are as they make judgments and laugh at others. One argument, and it all comes crashing down, and now her so-called besties have a troll account and are only posting her mean posts for everyone to see.
The drama of losing all her friends and being the talk of the middle school is believable. The mental health struggles were well done. I love that her big sister was such a great support for her, as well as her parents. Her sister’s advice not to respond or post back ended up helping Virginia grow into a better person who learns from her mistakes and makes it possible to start over. It is satisfying when the tides turn and people realize what these posts and violations of trust reveal about the integrity of her former best friends. We can only dream about real-life bullies having such a great comeuppance.
The one saving grace for Virginia while she is at her low point is that she jumped on the social media trend of “text door neighboring” and meets an anonymous boy whom she befriends. I soaked up the evolving relationship and the big reveal of the identity of the texter. The passages of text exchanges also help the book fly by, which is a bonus for reluctant readers.
I love this cautionary tale for the Middle-Grade age range. Readers age 8+ are getting phones, text chains, and social media, and it emphasizes internet safety and that what you text can be evidence used against you in ever-changing friendships, so it’s best to watch what you text and post. I read the book in one sitting, and the reluctant reader I shared the book with ranks it among her favorites. Jodi Meadows has a new young fan, and I am eternally grateful for the help in finding a winning read! This book is geared toward Middle-Grade readers but easily appeals to older ones as well.
