A gentle back-to-school tale sure to resonate with youngsters confronting their own friendship woes.
A new school and an old embarrassment threaten Emma’s third grade year.
Emma is excited to start at the brand-new Curiosity Academy, but of the 18 kids in Mrs. Z’s class, one turns out to be her former BFF, Lucy. What if everyone learns about the humiliating nickname Lucy saddled her with last year? Emma doesn’t seem to notice that Lucy is avoiding her and not having a great time herself. As her peers introduce themselves, Emma becomes convinced that she’s the Least Interesting Person in class. Her plan to become more popular goes awry, and her hopes of learning to play the flute in music class are dashed. Still, the perceptive Mrs. Z finds a way to help Emma shine, and when the students start debating what the school’s new mascot should be, Emma hits upon the perfect idea: the capybara, a creature that gets along with everyone—just as Emma hopes to. Impulsive but kind Emma’s troubles are relatable, while brown-skinned Mrs. Z feels like a hip reincarnation of Ms. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus books. When it comes to Emma and Lucy’s relationship, however, this engaging, low-key tale feels a bit unresolved, in part because of the series’ premise. Each title follows a different student and is written by a different author; readers will eventually learn Lucy’s full story. In Fajardo's cartoon artwork, Emma and Lucy present white; the class is diverse. Final art not seen.
A gentle back-to-school tale sure to resonate with youngsters confronting their own friendship woes. (Chapter book. 6-9)Pub Date: April 30, 2024
ISBN: 9781523525713
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Algonquin
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2024
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode.
A long-running series reaches its closing chapters.
Having, as Kline notes in her warm valedictory acknowledgements, taken 30 years to get through second and third grade, Harry Spooger is overdue to move on—but not just into fourth grade, it turns out, as his family is moving to another town as soon as the school year ends. The news leaves his best friend, narrator “Dougo,” devastated…particularly as Harry doesn’t seem all that fussed about it. With series fans in mind, the author takes Harry through a sort of last-day-of-school farewell tour. From his desk he pulls a burned hot dog and other items that featured in past episodes, says goodbye to Song Lee and other classmates, and even (for the first time ever) leads Doug and readers into his house and memento-strewn room for further reminiscing. Of course, Harry isn’t as blasé about the move as he pretends, and eyes aren’t exactly dry when he departs. But hardly is he out of sight before Doug is meeting Mohammad, a new neighbor from Syria who (along with further diversifying a cast that began as mostly white but has become increasingly multiethnic over the years) will also be starting fourth grade at summer’s end, and planning a written account of his “horrible” buddy’s exploits. Finished illustrations not seen.
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Nov. 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-451-47963-1
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Sept. 16, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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