Mortified - by Kristy Jackson (Hardcover)

About the Book

"When someone secretly signs up Belinda Houle, the school's shyest kid, to audition for a play, Belinda turns to her best friend, Sally, for help. Sally isn't like the other kids. Unlike Belinda, she isn't embarrassed by anything. Also, Sally thinks she's a witch. Belinda doesn't believe in magic, but if Sally has a spell for confidence--well, it couldn't hurt to try it. Could it? What follows the spell is a series of tragedies so tragic they would have been funny--if only they weren't happening to Belinda! First, Belinda's ex-best friend tricks her into eating dog food. Next, she's forced to wear a wig when her hair-straightening session goes very wrong. And then, Belinda slips on a plate of paint, wrecking a mural, and ends up with globs of green, brown and yellow paint all over her head! Things get worse and worse, until Belinda must face the facts: One piece of bad luck can be explained away, but this? This is a straight-up curse! Can she break the curse before the dreamy Ricky Daniels takes more notice of her crooked wig? More importantly, how can Belinda battle the very thing she hoped the spell would take away: her embarrassment?"--

Book Synopsis

SHORTLISTED FOR THE GOVERNOR GENERAL'S AWARD FOR YOUNG PEOPLE'S LITERATURE

SHORTLISTED FOR THE FOREST OF READING SILVER BIRCH AWARD

WINNER OF THE 2026 SASKATCHEWAN BOOK AWARDS CHILDREN'S BOOK OF THE YEAR

CHOSEN AS THE 2026 MANITOBA YOUNG READER'S CHOICE AWARDS SUNDOG HONOUR TITLE

"Brilliant, funny, unputdownable."- Alice Kuipers, award-winning children's author

For fans of Remarkably Ruby and Diary of a Wimpy Kid, comedy and cringe come together in this sweet novel about facing your fears.

It's nothing short of a catastrophe when someone secretly signs up Belinda Houle, the school's shyest kid, to audition for a play.

Belinda turns to Sally--her unflappable best friend and resident witch--for help. Belinda doesn't believe in magic, but if Sally says she has a spell for confidence...well, it couldn't hurt to try it. Could it?

What follows the spell is a series of disasters so disastrous they would have been funny--if only they weren't happening to Belinda! From eating dog food, to losing her hair in a straightening mishap, to wrecking a mural and ending up with globs of paint on her head, things get worse and worse for Belinda until she must face the facts: One piece of bad luck can be explained away, but this? This is a straight-up curse!

Can she break the curse before the dreamy Ricky Daniels takes notice of her crooked wig?

More importantly, can Belinda battle the very thing she hoped the spell would take away: her embarrassment?

Review Quotes

"Belinda is exactly the character every kid needs and Mortified is exactly the book every kid should read. There is nothing more beautiful than a character who walks you into a complicated life with bravery and intimacy. Never shying away from the reality of anxiety, always offering a way forward, Mortified is a great story full of incredible companions for all young readers." - Cherie Dimaline, bestselling author of The Marrow Thieves series and Funeral Songs for Dying Girls