King Dork

Blurb

King Dork is the first novel by Frank Portman, published in 2006. A work of young-adult fiction, the first-person narrative follows 14-year-old Tom Henderson during the first few months of his sophomore year of high school. Tom navigates the daily difficulties of a school filled with cruel peers and uncaring administrators, attempts to start a rock and roll band with his only close friend, negotiates the complexities of relating to girls, tries to piece together information about his deceased father through clues found in old novels, and evolves his relationship with his mother, stepfather, and sister. Titled after a 1999 song by Portman's band The Mr. T Experience, King Dork makes many references to rock bands, albums, and musicians.
The novel was named one of the Best Books for Young Adults by the American Library Association in 2007, and the filmmaking option was picked up by Gary Sanchez Productions. It was followed by Andromeda Klein, which uses the same fictional setting but is set some years later and follows different characters, and by a direct sequel, King Dork Approximately.