I found the unwillingness to tell an adult about the bullying (from Alex) particularly frustrating. Being a Mum myself I always encourage open communication, and fine it so frustrating to hear that a situation cannot be communicated because XYZ may happen. Then again, I am not a 12 year old with social anxiety, I am a 27 year old with social anxiety and a very strong opinion. As the story unravels, so do the boys’ personalities. It soon becomes clear that Dan isn’t just a stereotypical bully. We learn more about his inner feelings and soon begin to empathize with him. He may have a hard exterior, but underneath there is a boy crying out for help. Add to this the fact that Dan has to juggle different personalities when in different company and you end up with a highly complex character. If I’m honest, I found myself preferring Dan as a character due to that depth of personality. A moving, humane, funny portrait of two very different boys discovering what connects us all' Kiran Milwood Hargrave, author of The Girl of Ink and Stars

Dan on the other hand, has a very different set of circumstances. His brother has been taken away from him for reasons he’s not ready to admit, his parent’s marriage is decaying and he’s all alone. This broke my heart and I was rooting for him throughout the novel. Being an adult was probably the most thing we desired when we were in our pre-teen years. Of all the reasons that can give rise to that thought, the most common one is perhaps how hard life we ​​had to live as a pre-teenager. Social relationships, school, bullying, personal struggles, and all of the expectations from the adults that we have to meet are several things that take up a massive portion during that period of our lives.That’s not to say there is anything wrong with the portrayal of Alex. In fact, Stewart Foster has depicted Alex’s struggles skillfully. By writing in the first person, the reader is invited into Alex’s confused mind. We see his internal struggle laid bare, realizing how debilitating his condition can be. It is a highly accomplished piece of characterisation. And Alex, poor little Alex, bless him. You really get a sense of his struggles and being able to access the thoughts in his head was so important which is why it's such a good book to have included both the victim's and the bully's perspective. Now that the profile of mental health has been raised, it is important that books like All The Things That Could Go Wrong are published. It gives children a clear understanding as to what others go through and helps break the long-standing stereotypes. It also dispels many beliefs about bullies and challenges the reader to look behind the outward projection of a person. In this vein it very similar to Goldfish Boy which I recently reviewed. One thing I really liked about this book was how it portrayed the bullying, and how one can feel like their trapped. Of course, if you're being bullied, you should tell someone, but this book really shows how it's not as easy as it seems, and that simply saying those words and trying to get help sometimes doesn't feel possible, which is another reason it was so hard to read in that sense. You really want Alex to get the help and you watch him struggle with it, but he just can't do it.

It’s amazing! Such a bold idea to have a character like Dan… you pulled it off brilliantly.’ Ross Welford, author of Time Travelling with a Hamster We get to see Dan's side of the story, though, and we do end up feeling for Dan too. Dan has issues and he has reasons - or so he thinks - for bullying. With chapters alternating between narrators Dan and Alex, we are given an intimate, inside view into the hearts and souls of these two boys. This is not so much a tween book about bullying as it is a novel about how very much we are alike. When given the chance to really see each other, our differences become just a small part of who we really are. This rewarding, heart-warming novel is one everyone should read. Not only do we have the pleasure of reading about family life, but also the most precious friendship between two boys. I feel like this is a very overlooked aspect in modern literature so it was excellent to see. Dan and Alex are very different people but the way they interact is amazing. Especially since Dan is one of the main bullies of Alex, having this pressure on them only added to the intrigue.

Now let me introduce Dan. Things aren’t easy for Dan either. His brother has left and everything has changed. His only option is to take out his frustrations on easy targets such as Alex. Both boys’ are tested when their mothers, oblivious to the tensions at school, arrange for the boys to meet up at weekends. I think the easiest way to start this review is to say I loved everything about this book. I was a little worried going into it as I really enjoyed We Used to Be Kings by Stewart Foster, which I believe is an adult book, and was worried that maybe I wouldn't enjoy this one as much. But I did. Perhaps even more than We Used to Be Kings.