I Dare You – at a glance
The School Reading Lists’ five word review: Cautionary social media fame obsession.
YA book title: I Dare You.
YA author: Tamsin Winter.
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult Fiction.
Published by: Usborne.
ISBN: 9781805075721.
Recommended for children aged: 13+ year-olds.
First published: Paperback May 2024.
This YA book is ideal for: Teens interested in social media culture and going viral. The book serves as both entertainment and education, making it perfect for readers who want an engaging story while learning about the real dangers of social media fame obsession.
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Our review:
Best friends Willow and Alma are desperate for fame and convinced that going viral is their ticket to stardom. They begin filming increasingly dangerous dares for their social media followers, starting with harmless stunts like getting stuck in a basketball hoop. As their challenges escalate to duct-taping themselves to walls, eating super-hot chillies, and waxing off eyebrows, their fan base grows and they become addicted to the attention.
Driven by their hunger for likes and followers, the girls push themselves to go all out with increasingly extreme stunts, convinced that any trouble they get into is worth it for viral fame. But when they devise what they think is the perfect dare to prove themselves once and for all, their reckless pursuit of online celebrity leads to consequences far more serious than they ever imagined.
Their dangerous final stunt causes more than just a bit of trouble; it threatens to destroy not only their dreams of fame but their entire friendship for good. As the fallout from their actions unfolds, both girls must confront how far they’re willing to go for social media success and whether online adoration is truly worth losing everything that matters.
Our verdict:
I Dare You is a gripping, contemporary cautionary tale that today’s teens will find both thrilling and uncomfortably familiar. The story is a tense, escalating journey as Winter builds tension from the very first page, with readers watching helplessly as the friends hurtle towards disaster. Teens will undoubtedly relate to the allure that viral fame holds over Willow and Alma, wincing as they consistently make poor decisions, but also empathising with the relentlessly addictive nature of social media notoriety.
This shocking but essential read provides a vital wake-up call to all young readers about the very real dangers lurking behind the seemingly innocent pursuit of online fame and followers.
Many thanks to Usborne for the review copy.
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