Bright

Ages 8 to 12

In this poignant middle grade novel, a struggling student joins her school's celebrated quiz team in a bid to avoid failing eighth grade.

Marianne Blume knows she’s one of the stupid kids. After years of trying and trying and feeling like she's always failing, she has mastered the art of turning off her brain whenever questions or lectures arise. She gets by in school on a combination of luck, deflection, and charisma—that is, until she lands in the classroom of Mr. Garcia.

To avoid flunking Mr. Garcia's class, Marianne joins her school's Quiz Quest team, hoping the move will ingratiate her to him, the team's coach. Can Marianne learn to be smart if she puts her mind to it? And what does it really mean to be 'bright,' anyway?

Bright is a readable and empowering story about bucking labels, overcoming preconceptions, and learning to find—and uphold—your own self-worth.

About the Author

Brigit Young was born and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and now lives on the East Coast with her husband and daughters. She is a proud graduate of the City College of New York and has taught creative writing to kids of all ages in settings ranging from workshops at Writopia Lab to bedsides at a pediatric hospital. Brigit has published poetry and short fiction in numerous literary journals, as well as the middle grade novels Worth a Thousand Words and The Prettiest. brigityoung.com