Important themes about self-reliance, community-building, and the benefits of curoiosity. Wonderful details about visiting Europe in 1989.
Positive Messages
a lot
Teens should be open to new ideas about culture, exploring unfamiliar places, and making new friends. Embarking on a romance can be scary, but it can also be fulfilling, if approached with honesty and sensitivity.
Positive Role Models
a lot
Dan is a "good kid," who tries to be invisible to bullying kids and smart alecks. But he opens up over the course of his trip, becoming more adventurous and confident. He has help from his travel mates and new friends.
Diverse Representations
a lot
Dan Santat, a Filipino American from Los Angeles, is bullied during middle school, not apparently about race but around issues of class (jocks vs. nerds). Most of the school seems to be White. During the trip to Europe, his travel mates have a mix of skin tones, and residents are predominately White.
Parents need to know that A First Time for Everything is a graphic novel about Caldecott-wining author-illustrator Dan Santat's European vacation at age 13. Set in 1989, the story follows Dan as he makes new friends, tries new foods, and takes a chance on romance. Funny, insightful, it's perfectly aimed at its eighth-grade audience, but will delight a wide range of readers. There's no swearing. Romance includes is a crush, hand-holding, a first kiss that's illustrated, and other kisses implied. Adults smoke cigarettes on a plane, and Dan drinks beer at a beer hall. The book won the 2023 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.
Santat presents a character who is sensitive and smart, considerate and funny. He is a young man worth getting to know. This largely autobiographical tale about an early teen going on a school trip to Europe one summer shows how our young people can come out of their protective shells and shine when they are in a safe environment and with like-minded people.
It is particularly refreshing to see that Santat avoids exaggerated scenarios of conflict, teen crushes and risk taking and, instead, depicts a less dramatic but more relatable sequence of events which unfolds from that crucial first year of starting middle school.
What's the Story?
As A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING opens, Dan Santat has just finished eight grade and recalls being bullied at school. He has low expectations for high school, figuring that he will continue to be bullied. But his parents insist that he join a three-week trip to Europe, and soon he finds himself enjoying the sights in London, Paris, and Germany. With a new set of friends, he's more confident, and even thinks about finding himself a summer girlfriend. Is he ready for the heartbreak that separation will bring?
Everyone remembers their first kiss, and this heartfelt graphic memoir captures its magic. In A First Time for Everything, Dan Santat brings all of his formidible storytelling skills to bear on the project, with expressive, kinetic artwork and an ear for how kids reallly talk. His is the kind of vacation everyone wishes they'd had, full of adventure and self-revelation.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how A First Time First Everything celebrates travel. What benefits do Dan and his fellow travelers get from taking a trip to Europe? If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Travel is a lot different from how it was in 1989. What freedoms could teens enjoy then that aren't available today?
Why is middle school so difficult for so many kids? What strategies can they take to make those years more productive and enjotable?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Michael Berry
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
