This review first appeared in Booklist on August 1, 2026.
As an insect aficionado, Timothy Quibble understands the concept of metamorphosis better than most. Even so, he doesn’t expect adolescence—that time of transition and transformation—to be quite so agonizing. At home, his already shaky relationship with his dismissive, indifferent mother is further strained by her impending impulsive marriage. At school, he contends with bullying and the often humiliating social sidelining by junior-high cliques. And, of course, there’s the darkness growing within him, on the verge of violently erupting the moment everything gets to be too much. After a series of confrontations with both family and friends, this spreading shadow threatens to envelop Tim like a cocoon, and he must reckon with his turbulent emotions before he emerges as a monster. DiTerlizzi’s atmospheric illustrations help set the story’s moody tone as he delivers a haunting and heartfelt coming-of-age tale that refuses to shy away from the sorrow and uncertainty of leaving childhood behind, while also celebrating the messy, marvelous process of growing into oneself. A Kafkaesque offering for fans of Paul Tremblay’s Another (2025).