Publication Date: 12 February 2026

The Blurb

Vinny needs support from his agony-aunt mum, but she’s too busy helping other people to notice in this empathetic tale about family and mental health by bestseller Helen Rutter.

Vinny’s got problems – lots of them. His family’s falling apart, and his best mates have dumped him for some really annoying girls.

He should be able to turn to his mum for help – she’s an online life coach who answers other people’s problems for a living. But she’s too busy to see that Vinny is really struggling.

Unable to solve his own issues, Vinny starts replying to unanswered posts on an old blog of his mum’s. At first, the solutions seem easy, and he can be as hilariously honest as any 12-year-old boy would be, but what will happen when Vinny realises he’s out of his depth?

The Review

A powerful exploration of mental health and the hidden loneliness that many children face when their parents are overwhelmed by their own careers or personal dramas.

Vinnie is written with a raw, authentic vulnerability that hits home immediately. He isn’t a movie version of a struggling kid; he’s real. He’s the boy whose best friends have suddenly traded him in for the dizzying world of teenage girls, leaving him adrift in a sea of awkward transitions. Helen’s characterization is so precise that you can practically feel Vinnie’s heart sink every time his social circle gets smaller.

The most poignant part of this story is the domestic irony. Vinnie’s mum is a professional agony aunt and life coach, literally paid to solve the world’s problems, yet she is completely blind to the crumbling world of her own son. The empathy we feel for Vinnie is two-fold; the stinging rejection of friends who have outpaced him socially at school, and the quiet ache of being invisible to the people who is supposed to see you best at home.

When Vinnie begins secretly answering posts on his mum’s old blog, we see his hilarious, unfiltered 12-year-old honesty come to the fore. But it’s the climax that delivers the most impact. I loved seeing Vinnie finally stand up for himself, not with a tantrum or a scream, but with kindness, respect, and firm boundaries, it is incredibly refreshing! It’s a masterclass in gentle strength that provides a fantastic roadmap for young readers navigating their own complicated relationships.

A funny, deeply moving, and necessary read for anyone who has ever felt overlooked.

Huge thanks to Barrington Stoke for sending me a finished copy.

The Off The Page Challenge

I loved Vinnie’s blog take over and his hilariously honest advice. So I’m challenging you to channel your inner Vinnie and have a go at dispensing some hilarious honest advice to a non-human object that is struggling with a problem.

Pick one of the following struggling characters to give advice to, or choose one of your own:

• Your Desk Tray: It’s tired of being slammed to the floor, abandoned on a cupboard, and filled with pencil shavings and sweet wrappers. It feels unappreciated.
• Your Chair: It’s completely over you swinging on it, abandoning it a metre away from your desk, and the post lunch wind? It’s reached breaking point.

Now, write a short Agony Aunt reply to your chosen character. To keep it in the style of the book, your advice must follow these three rules:

1. Be Hilariously Honest: Don’t sugarcoat it.
2. Show Empathy: Acknowledge why they feel like a nobody.
3. The Respectful Stand: Give them one piece of advice on how to stand up for themselves kindly.

Set your timer for 10 minutes and have fun!