Dropping Beats - by Nathanael Lessore (Paperback)

About the Book

Aspiring young rapper Shaun 'Growls' Thompson navigates through embarrassing incidents, family troubles, and friendship challenges, finding support from a new friend and ultimately hatching a plan to save his family from eviction.

Book Synopsis

"Funny, bursting with heart, goofy, wise, and did I mention- wildly wonderfully funny."
--Jon Scieszka, First National Ambassador of Young People's Literature and Founder of Guys Read

A hilarious and heartfelt young YA comedy about the misadventures of an aspiring young rapper as he navigates school, family, and friendship.

Thirteen-year-old Growls (aka Shaun) is an aspiring (awful) rapper who hopes to enter this year's Raptology competition with his best friend, Shanks (aka Zachariah). After all, what better way to land his crush (Tanisha) and get the respect he finally deserves than winning the contest and going viral?

But when a livestream practice goes epically wrong, the two friends do go viral- and not in the way they'd hoped.

Now the laughingstock of the school, Growls is sure he'll never have another chance to date Tanisha. Even worse, Shanks has gone MIA, leaving him terribly alone.

But when Growls meets the new girl on the block (Siobhan), things don't seem so terrible after all. And with some patience, a little luck, and a whole lot of practice, he just might win the Raptology competition and be a hero to both Siobhan and Shanks.

Either way, he's ready for this. He's steady for this. It's comeback season and they call him comeback king for a reason.

Review Quotes

Winner of the 2024 Branford Boase Award
Shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal
Shortlisted for the Jhalak prize
A Kirkus Best Books of 2025 list pick

* "Growls's lyrics and clever wordplay are woven throughout... Famous or not, the star of the story shines in this must-have for all YA collections."--SLJ, starred review

"This well-written story explores relevant topics including social media, mental health, being a caretaker, and the importance of believing in yourself. A hilarious, witty story centered on embracing your quirks and the importance of friendship."--Kirkus

"Utilizing the protagonist's immediate-feeling first-person POV, debut author Lessore crafts a hilarious look into one teen's struggles to reach for the proverbial stars.... the inclusion of Growls's beatbox poems throughout allows readers a glimpse into his intimate thoughts and deep internality as an artist and adolescent, highlighting that Growls is more than his goofy outward persona." --Publishers Weekly

"This romp is carried by both Lessore's knack for situational comedy and ability to create a narrative voice for Shaun that uniquely mixes braggadocio, cluelessness, and an honest desire to do good. The inclusion of class consciousness and mental health...deepen the story, making Shaun's plight all the more relatable and hilarious."--Booklist

"Funny, bursting with heart, goofy, wise, and did I mention- wildly wonderfully funny."
--Jon Scieszka, First National Ambassador of Young People's Literature and Founder of Guys Read

"Hilarious and heartwarming, it's impossible not to love Growls and his raw, uplifting way of seeing the world. Deftly written and an incredible debut, DROPPING BEATS is pure joy and laughter."--Beth Reekles, author of THE KISSING BOOTH

About the Author

Nathanael Lessore was born in Camberwell, South East London, as one of eight children to French and Madagascan parents. Despite spending most of his life in Peckham, Nathanael has also lived in Paris, Strasbourg, and Singapore. Nathanael became a marketing executive after graduating from the University of East London, believing at the time that a creative writing degree destined him for a career in marketing. Dropping Beats is his debut and writing it gave him the opportunity to show his South East London childhood as the funny, warm, adventurous world that wasn't always represented as such.