MS Review – The Friendship Formula – middle school
Ingram, Hunter, and Matt McWilliams. The Friendship Formula. Nashville, TN: Outsmart Press, Inc, 2025.
Outsmart Secrets
Guide to Categories – MS Review – review of books for older elementary-aged and middle school-aged children
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Summary
THE FRIENDSHIP FORMULA (An Outsmart Secrets Book)
Olivia Walker’s last big idea ended in total disaster. Now she’s got one chance to prove she’s not just another dreamer.
When Olivia’s team-building plan falls apart spectacularly, she becomes the laughingstock of her small town. But she’s determined to redeem herself with a bold business venture that could turn everything around.
The only problems? Her friends each have their own concerns about the plan, the adults don’t take them seriously, and her biggest rival keeps showing up at the worst possible moments.
When everything starts falling apart, Olivia discovers something that changes the game completely. With guidance from Mr. Reed, a wise mentor with stories from around the world, she learns that success isn’t about having the perfect plan. It’s about mastering the art of working with people.
About The Outsmart Series
The Outsmart Series is an adventure that teaches young readers how to win at life, turning age-old wisdom into middle-grade fun. Young readers get edge-of-your-seat stories and authentic characters they can relate to. Adults love seeing them naturally absorb the people skills, confidence, and problem-solving abilities that’ll make them unstoppable. No lectures, no preaching, just real wisdom wrapped in stories you can’t put down.
Purchase The Friendship Formula on Amazon – https://amzn.to/4oEbZm6
My MS Review
Ingram and McWilliams are new-to-me authors but I don’t think this will be the last book I read by them. The Friendship Formula is well-written and a story I couldn’t stop reading.
The characters in this book are like-able, well-developed, and show growth as the story proceeds. They are guided by their friend, the older man who owns a bookstore, but mostly they learn by trial and error. The only thing I didn’t really like about the book was the apparent lack of parental involvement in the story.
Throughout the story, the four friends learn a lot about how to deal with people, even those who have seemed gruff or antagonistic. They also learn how to better understand their friends.
The Friendship Formula would be a wonderful addition to any K-12 Christian school library, Christian or public. It is appropriate for older elementary and middle school children.
I received a complimentary copy of The Friendship Formula. This is my honest review.
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