The charming cover drew me to pick up Seven Minutes in Candyland, and I am so glad I did. This feel-good story brings back all the best memories of high school while simultaneously reminding us that it wasn’t a perfect place. It’s a celebration of youth, love, the power of friendship, and the joy that can be found in a small piece of chocolate.

Sophomore Kal (Kalvin) Shmelton needs big money, and he needs it fast. His parents have turned a joint psychologist practice into a wildly popular couples therapy podcast and YouTube channel that’s pulling in thousands of dollars a week in sponsored content. But their work on Right the ‘Ship has all but cost them their marriage – and KaI is convinced he can save everything if he just gets their family to Hawaii. It’s the last place he can remember everyone being truly happy, and he is certain if they return, memories will come flooding back of how things were, and everyone will reconnect once more. He doesn’t have a job, but he does have a side hustle in dealing candy of the Mars and Hershey variety between classes. With its allergen restrictions and inflated vending machine prices, the school isn’t giving the students the sugar rush they need to make it through the day, but Kal can and does.

When the gorgeous Sterling Glistern – Kal’s forever-but-never-acted-upon crush – sneaks into the storage closet while he’s taking inventory of his candy stash, he is at first dumbfounded and tongue-tied. She’s crying, and he has no idea how to fix that. It turns out that what he does do – listen and offer the kind of practical advice he’s heard his parents dish out for years – is all that’s needed. In fact, Sterling appreciates it so much that she quietly tells all her friends how much help Kal was. Now, he’s the go-to man for everyone with a problem. He refuses (at first) to counsel anyone – until folks start offering to pay. Before he can quite wrap his head around it, Kal is selling seven-minute therapy sessions for ten bucks a pop in his sugar-laden hidey-hole. Need relationship advice? Kal, who has never really had one, is your man. Struggling with teen anxiety and depression? He’ll teach you the mindfulness techniques needed to make it through your day. Kal doesn’t love the job, but he does love the cash he’s raking in.

The gig isn’t without its problems, though. Mr. Perkins, who allows Kal to keep his candy stash in the AV closet, is eating through Kal’s inventory as he works through his own problems. Maddie, the student council VP, has it in for Kal for something he totally didn’t do. She’s threatening to find grounds to have him suspended, something that will not look good on college applications. And his best friend Rod has managed to tick off one of the varsity soccer players, and now the two of them have to watch their backs constantly, waiting for the man to take revenge. Nothing about Kal’s life is easy, but nothing about growing up ever is.

I think some people will question the ethics of Kal’s doing therapy sessions, but I had no problem with it. Everyone knows he doen’t have a license, and he recommends professional counselors to those who have serious problems. It could be an age thing, but when I was in school, the student newspaper had columns that gave advice from students to students. I also remember reading numerous teen romances based on the school paper advice column reporters, the most famous (infamous) being Dear Lovey Hart, I Am Desperate by Ellen Conford, which was turned into an Afterschool Special on TV. (Before my time, but I did watch the re-run.) So yeah, this wasn’t an issue for me.

If I had a teen in my life, this is the book I would gift them for the holidays. It captures the difficulties of school – the stress of class work, the added stress of extracurriculars and choosing which ones will help you get into college that you can actually participate in – and what it’s like to juggle that with life – being a family member, being a friend, and developing relationships. It also captures life’s imperfections. Rod, one of Kal’s besties, is a trouble magnet. Dino, his favorite galpal, is an excellent gamer who refuses to listen to Kal regarding her love life. Watching her choose between two young women – her former love who broke her heart and a new possibility – makes Kal anxious to help, but she is one of the few students not listening to him. I loved how the story juxtaposed the way that he could help strangers, but for those closest to him, he simply had to watch and be supportive during their struggles. This is often true in real life.

I also loved how teen life is depicted. From communication – talking in the gaming world, by text, in person – to how they hang out and date is beautifully captured. The book does a fabulous job of showing us that reality can be hard – parents aren’t perfect, we will have people who don’t like us, and teachers are as human as we are – but we can still have hope for the future. One failure doesn’t mean all of life sucks.

Kal and his friends, what can I say? I loved them. They’re quirky, sweet, clever, funny, and resilient – everything every parent wants their kid to be. I especially appreciated that they could talk about issues such as racism, sexuality, and feminism without any of it feeling like forced representation or a lecture on how things should be. These are things relevant to their lives, and they grapple with what that means to them in the real world but in a natural and positive manner. I also loved that all three are learning that both success and failure are part of life. You can fix some things, not fix others, and survive both experiences.

The romances here all seem realistic, too. Some of the kids Kal counseles are together just to be together, and he helps them see it’s okay to be alone. His own relationship with Sterling captures all the teen feels – insecurity, desire, love, and working out who you want to be as you figure out who you want to be with. I liked that they start as acquaintances and work their way to friendship (and possibly beyond). It fits their personalities. I also liked that Rod and his crush take a different course, and Dino takes a unique path too. It’s nice that it isn’t just one love story multiplied but it captures the variety that is high school romance.

Another positive is getting the tale from Kal’s perspective. I spend a lot of time reading female voices, and this male voice – in both the author and character – was thoroughly refreshing.

My only complaint is the rushed ending, which takes the story from sweet to saccharine and has aspects that are more than a little silly.

That said, I loved Seven Minutes in Candyland, and if you enjoy teen stories at all I strongly recommend it to you.