This is the time of year where I start to panic, because I’ve set a goal for myself to read x amount of books per year and I’m nowhere near that goal. This year, that number is 80, and I’m sitting right at 55. Not looking good for me, here, unless I read fifteen books a month for the next two months.

So I start to supplement my reading list with kid’s books, to pad my numbers a little bit.

My son brought this one home from the library, and I decided I’d read it, too. My son has yet to read even a page of it. Ugh.

This is in the same vein as the Wimpy Kid, Big Nate and the like. It’s written diary style, with illustrations peppered throughout. Our narrator is Nigel, an almost 100-year-old vampire who was turned when he was a teenager, and he has yet to manifest his powers. So he’s stuck in the neverending loop of high school life, trying to fit in even though his parents dress ultra Goth and haven’t gotten with the times. He has an annoying vampire sister, who’s younger than him but who has her powers, so she can basically beat him up.

It was an entertaining read, particularly because of the twist of Nigel not being very good at vampiring. Instead of a glittery aura where all the kids admire him, Nigel is seen as a loser (the girls rank him a 4 out of 10). He tries to win the affections of fellow student Chloe, writing her poems and competing with another student for her affections.

This is the beginning of a series, so this book just nicely sets up Nigel’s family and school life, and a villain reveals himself at the end. In following books, there are sure to be more bad guys and more teen drama. I think if my son ever gets around to reading this before it goes back to the library, he will like it.