The Overthinkers' Club

Published on 15 April 2026 at 19:10

The Overthinkers' Club

💭🐹🌈🏠

by Nat Luurtsema

★★★★

At a glance

Things I loved:

✍🏼 Author: Nat Luurtsema

🎨 Illustrator: Cecile Dormeau

📅 Release Date: 12th March 2026

📚 Book type: Illustrated chapter, diary style, 340 pages

🌟 Reader level: growing

🐹 Pamela Hamela stealing hearts
👶 “The Pea” = adorable chaos
🏡 navigating a blended family
🤝 kind, understanding step-mum
💬 learning to open up at home
💛 supportive family moments

Dive Deeper

My Thoughts...

I picked up The Overthinkers' Club: Happy List after another brilliant recommendation from James at Rebel Reading Society — and also because I’ve been loving diary-style books lately (as do my KS2 class!).

Poor Birdie is dealing with a LOT: an ageing hamster, a blended family on the horizon, moving house, friendship worries and that constant feeling of anxiety bubbling away. Determined to feel better, she and her best friend set out to create a “happy list” to help quiet those overthinking thoughts and focus on the positives.

As an overthinker myself, this book made a lot of sense to me! I loved how it gently encourages readers to notice the good, while also being honest about how hard things can feel. Birdie’s journey towards opening up, communicating with her family and learning how to be kind to herself is handled in such a relatable, realistic way - no quick fixes, just small, positive steps.

The illustrations are brilliant and really bring the diary-style format to life. They remind me a little of the Lottie Brooks series, although The Overthinkers' Club has slightly more text (but is just as engaging!).

I did actually cry at one point (I'll let you work out which part!) and, as a child of divorced parents, I really appreciated how sensitively Nat deals with difficult topics such as step parents, step siblings and new houses!

🌟I’d recommend this for Year 4+ readers. It’s accessible without needing to be a highly confident reader, but I think upper KS2 will connect most with the themes and messages.🌟

Blurb

Birdie is an overthinker, and she has a lot to overthink. Her BFF Chloe wants new friends (BETRAYAL), she will be a teenager in one year (BREATHE), yet owns ZERO bras (surely some mistake?!), and a boy at school maybe has a crush on her (BUT HOW TO BE SURE?!).

So Birdie has made a Happy List to tackle all the awkward and emotional challenges of being a tween. THEN she will stop being an anxious ball of stress and be happy!

That's the plan anyway...