- Chapter Books
- Ages 9–12
- Contemporary
How to Be Me
Part of Cath HoweView the full series
A boy locked inside his grief since his mum died is signed up for a summer drama club he's dreading. A kind, gently uplifting story about finding your voice and learning to let people in.
- Best for9–12
- FormatChapter
- Length272 pp
- Read aloud~3 hr50 min
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The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Conversational
- Literary
Tone
- Warm
- Bittersweet
- Heartwarming
- Gentle
- Inspirational
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
Since his mum died, Lucas has closed himself off from almost everyone. He and his dad seem to speak entirely different languages, and the only company he really wants is his au pair and his two cats. So the long summer holiday stretching ahead feels unbearable, especially when his dad signs him up for a drama club, of all things. Lucas hates the idea of performing and has no clue how to be around new people. But the club is full of others with their own worries and quirks, and slowly, almost against his will, Lucas begins to open up and talk. Then disaster strikes, and it's Lucas who has to step forward and help. Written with great empathy and a light touch, Cath Howe's third novel handles grief, anxiety and loneliness with warmth and understanding, building to a genuinely uplifting story about finding the courage to be yourself.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
Best for readers of 9-12, with grief at its heart that makes it most resonant for the upper end and for sensitive children who may need an adult alongside. It reads well aloud or shared from about 8.
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- Best fit · 9–12
- Read aloud · 8–11
- Independent · 9–12
Prose load
Moderate
Visual support
None
Reluctant-reader friendly
Workable
Read-aloud quality
Workable
Preview before sharing if a child is sensitive to: death of parent, grief.
Bedtime suitability
2 / 5 · Better outside bedtime
Sensitive-child
2 / 5 · Use judgement
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Grief and loss
- Emotional realism
- Shy children
- Finding confidence
Avoid if
- Sensitive to parental death
- Wants light escapism
- Wants gentle bedtime
Particularly good for children who are…
- Bereavement
- Anxiety and worry
- Making friends
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
Lucas feels utterly real as a boy who has shut everyone out, and watching him inch out of his shell at the drama club he dreaded, then rise to the moment when disaster strikes, is quietly triumphant. Readers who feel out of step will see themselves in him.
- Being understood finally
- Proving yourself
Why parents love it
Howe writes bereavement and anxiety with real tenderness and no melodrama, and the drama-club setting gives the emotional recovery a warm, hopeful shape. A gentle, well-crafted way into hard feelings for a sensitive reader.
- Conversation starter
- Great writing
In the series
Cath Howe.
6 books · open the series →
About the author
Cath Howe.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
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Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
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