Welcome to the realm of All Saints Junior High during the late 1990s, where aspirations, ambitions, and objectives ignite the nascent minds of eighth-grade students with a sense of ambiguity. Presented through the perspectives of these students, our narrative unfolds as an episodic account, chronicling a year in the lives of best friends Mod and Dan, as they embark on their journey towards maturity amidst the backdrop of the late '90s. In this coming of age era of wonderment, the two adolescents, on the cusp of adulthood, find themselves standing at the threshold of their first year as emerging adults.
Dan, the determined and athletic leader of their close-knit circle, sets his sights on various objectives for his final year of junior high, encompassing both pursuing his ideal romantic interest, ascending the social hierarchy of teenage life, and carving out a reputation beyond the confines of his inner circle. Conversely, the idiosyncratic and introverted Mod finds himself grappling with the lack of direction, unable to fathom a world that extends beyond the boundaries of his clique. Navigating their way through the intricate maze of adolescence, where curiosity intermingles with trepidation, and the past and future converge as compasses guiding their comprehension of the complexities surrounding them, their encounters with newfound acquaintances, and, most significantly, their own identities.
This novel world that Dan and Mod strive to comprehend is not entirely dissimilar from the one their peers are attempting to navigate. Amidst the haze of the school year, where the stakes are marked by the potential loss of individualism, friendships, or the regretful endurance of missed opportunities, just to evade being the center of humiliation or heartache. The teenagers gradually come to recognize the necessity of freeing themselves from complacency. They begin to embrace the chaotic allure of adventure, seizing the final secure year that permits such audacity
Thus unfolds the coming-of-age journey of Dan, Mod, and their companions through the late 1990s. In this era, the indistinct aspirations, dreams, and motivations of eighth-grade students animate their unique place in the world. It was a time when teenage lives remained uncharted by corporate entities, smartphones were nonexistent, the internet persisted as a subculture, and happiness was derived from the adventures shared with cherished friends.
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A message from the author
The Daze began during a dark period in my life, and also the world, at a time when I found myself looking back not out of nostalgia, but out of necessity. I needed to remember, clearly and honestly the last time the world felt open, communal, and full of possibility. Writing these books was a way of returning to that feeling, not to relive it, but to understand it.
The series chronicles a group of teenagers growing up in Etobicoke between 1998 and 2003, mapping their lives month by month as they move through the final year of junior high and into the uncertainty of high school. This structure was intentional. Adolescence is not experienced in sweeping arcs, but in small accumulations, days, seasons, friendships, music, and shared moments that only reveal their importance much later. A series allowed me to honour that gradual unfolding with patience and accuracy.
Every character and setting in The Daze is rooted in real people and real places. These books were written with deep respect for the friends who shaped that time in my life. I did not write to speak for them, but to speak from my experience of knowing them, of how it felt to belong, to drift, to be happy without realizing that happiness was fragile. If I did not care for these people, I would not have cared to write about them at all.
At its core, The Daze is not a love letter to the past, but a record of what that time was: messy, sincere, uncertain, and alive. It acknowledges the quiet grief of not knowing when something meaningful is ending, and the way memory becomes a refuge when the present feels unsteady. Writing the series gave form to a time that might otherwise have faded into something vague or unreal.
The transition from eighth grade to ninth grade marks a shift in the series, from comfort to endurance, from familiarity to survival. This is where The Daze becomes less about innocence and more about persistence: learning how to move forward when things no longer feel intuitive, and when identity, friendships, and belonging are suddenly under pressure. The story continues not because answers are found, but because life doesn’t pause to provide them.
Ultimately, The Daze exists because I needed to know that this time happened, that the people, the moments, and the feeling of being young and connected were real. It is a record of presence, written with care, and an acknowledgment that even if we grow apart, what we shared still mattered.
- FD