A group of friends campaigns to change their school’s mascot.
After a comedic mishap with the worn-out costume for Clay Elementary School’s longtime mascot—Arnold the Armadillo—friends Lizzy and Connor O’Malley (twins), Kym Park, and Deon Gibson see an opportunity to get the school a more compelling mascot: the bulldog. They propose it to their teacher (Isadora Zipsokowski, called Miss Zips), who insists they take their idea to the principal themselves. But not all of their classmates are in favor—domineering Suri Brewster opposes them, arguing against the bulldog and organizing a pro-armadillo contingent. The friends work on a new mascot idea—a dragon—and present their case to the principal, who puts their idea against the status quo, represented by Suri, to a schoolwide vote. The job of speaking for their side falls on Lizzy. In the face of her anxiety, her friends rally together to help her support her arguments. When the time comes, Suri speaks well, but Lizzy’s humor and sound logic carry the day. In a delightful twist, Suri is a story antagonist who isn’t antagonistic—she and Lizzy are mutually supportive as they face public speaking. A final segment provides tips on how to structure persuasive arguments. Publishing simultaneously is a sequel, Everybody Needs a Buddy. Lizzy, Connor, and Suri present white, while Kym is Asian and Deon is black.
An upbeat and empowering series opener. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85718-7
Page Count: 96
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 17, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2018
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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A young visionary describes his ideal school: “Perfectly planned and impeccably clean. / On a scale, 1 to 10, it’s more like 15!”
In keeping with the self-indulgently fanciful lines of If I Built a Car (2005) and If I Built a House (2012), young Jack outlines in Seussian rhyme a shiny, bright, futuristic facility in which students are swept to open-roofed classes in clear tubes, there are no tests but lots of field trips, and art, music, and science are afterthoughts next to the huge and awesome gym, playground, and lunchroom. A robot and lots of cute puppies (including one in a wheeled cart) greet students at the door, robotically made-to-order lunches range from “PB & jelly to squid, lightly seared,” and the library’s books are all animated popups rather than the “everyday regular” sorts. There are no guards to be seen in the spacious hallways—hardly any adults at all, come to that—and the sparse coed student body features light- and dark-skinned figures in roughly equal numbers, a few with Asian features, and one in a wheelchair. Aside from the lack of restrooms, it seems an idyllic environment—at least for dog-loving children who prefer sports and play over quieter pursuits.
An all-day sugar rush, putting the “fun” back into, er, education. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-525-55291-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dial
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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Hank Zipzer, poster boy for dyslexic middle graders everywhere, stars in a new prequel series highlighting second-grade trials and triumphs.
Hank’s hopes of playing Aqua Fly, a comic-book character, in the upcoming class play founder when, despite plenty of coaching and preparation, he freezes up during tryouts. He is not particularly comforted when his sympathetic teacher adds a nonspeaking role as a bookmark to the play just for him. Following the pattern laid down in his previous appearances as an older child, he gets plenty of help and support from understanding friends (including Ashley Wong, a new apartment-house neighbor). He even manages to turn lemons into lemonade with a quick bit of improv when Nick “the Tick” McKelty, the sneering classmate who took his preferred role, blanks on his lines during the performance. As the aforementioned bully not only chokes in the clutch and gets a demeaning nickname, but is fat, boastful and eats like a pig, the authors’ sensitivity is rather one-sided. Still, Hank has a winning way of bouncing back from adversity, and like the frequent black-and-white line-and-wash drawings, the typeface is designed with easy legibility in mind.
An uncomplicated opener, with some funny bits and a clear but not heavy agenda. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Feb. 14, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-448-48239-2
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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