THE OUTSMARTERS

Kate’s advice booth is gaining traction, but keeping her anger in check can be challenging in a small Canadian town steeped in secrets and where people’s assumptions can feel limiting.

Twelve-year-old Kate has lived with her irascible grandmother for several years. She does chores at Gran’s business (the Junk Yard) and yard work for neighbors—though she chafes at Gran’s habit of teaching her real-world lessons by taking a hefty cut of her earnings. Still, Kate decides it’s worth renting an old shed on Gran’s property for her summer money-making idea, and she distributes flyers announcing “PHILOSOPHIC HELP / Get answers to life’s questions from History’s Greatest Thinkers. / $2 per question.” Kate leans on anger-management techniques from a ’70s publication called Get Back to Groovy, scavenges usable cast-offs in the Absolutely Unsellables back lot, and finds solace among friends who are grappling with their own issues. Kate’s increasing desire to understand her past heightens Gran’s fears about the possible effect of Mom’s dysfunction should she reenter Kate’s life. Kate’s first-person narration allows her quirky, perceptive, and wryly funny worldview to shine. The main characters are richly drawn, while a couple of the baddies are more one-note evil. Ellis deftly presents subplots that explore serious and troubling themes without minimizing their impact or unseating Kate as the center of the story as the various strands converge in a hopeful ending. Most characters read white.

An insightful young person makes a powerful difference in this emotionally astute work.