This delightful sequel to 2007’s My Last Best Friend continues the story of fourth-grader Ida May, her growing friendship with Stacey and her rivalry with bully Jenna. While looking for costumes in her attic, Ida May and Stacey unearth a mermaid nightlight. Turned off, the mermaid has a pleasant smile; turned on, the smile turns into a scary, glowing grin. Stacey believes the lamp will cast evil spells like those in horror movies. They form the “Secret Mermaid Club,” and Ida May directs the first spell at bossy Jenna. The two girls believe their spells actually work, but things become complicated when they need to lie to make Stacey’s spells come true. Can Ida May straighten things out without endangering their friendship? The unexpected twist, with Ida May extending the hand of friendship to Jenna, is believable and satisfying. Bowe is spot-on with Ida May’s feelings toward Stacey and her change-of-heart toward Jenna. Issues surrounding divorced households are handled realistically. Fans of Ida May will be overjoyed to read this new installment. (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-15-206498-3
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2008
Categories: CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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Sweetly low-key and totally accessible.
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Billy Miller’s second-grade year is quietly spectacular in a wonderfully ordinary way.
Billy’s year begins with his worry over the lump on his head, a souvenir of a dramatic summer fall onto concrete: Will he be up to the challenges his new teacher promises in her letter to students? Quickly overshadowing that worry, however, is a diplomatic crisis over whether he has somehow offended Ms. Silver on the first day of school. Four sections—Teacher, Father, Sister and Mother—offer different and essential focal points for Billy’s life, allowing both him and readers to explore several varieties of creative endeavor, small adventures, and, especially, both challenges and successful problem-solving. The wonderfully self-possessed Sal, his 3-year-old sister, is to Billy much as Ramona is to Beezus, but without the same level of tension. Her pillowcase full of the plush yellow whales she calls the Drop Sisters (Raindrop, Gumdrop, etc.) is a memorable prop. Henkes offers what he so often does in these longer works for children: a sense that experiences don’t have to be extraordinary to be important and dramatic. Billy’s slightly dreamy interior life isn’t filled with either angst or boisterous silliness—rather, the moments that appear in these stories are clarifying bits of the universal larger puzzle of growing up, changing and understanding the world. Small, precise black-and-white drawings punctuate and decorate the pages.
Sweetly low-key and totally accessible. (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-226812-9
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2013
Categories: CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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Ryan Hart is navigating the fourth grade and all its challenges with determination.
Her mom named her Ryan because it means “king,” and she wanted Ryan to feel powerful every time she heard her name; Ryan knows it means she is a leader. So when changes occur or disaster strikes, budding chef Ryan does her best to find the positive and “make sunshine.” When her dad is laid off from the post office, the family must make adjustments that include moving into a smaller house, selling their car, and changing how they shop for groceries. But Ryan gets to stay at Vernon Elementary, and her mom still finds a way to get her the ingredients she needs to practice new recipes. Her older brother, Ray, can be bossy, but he finds little ways to support her, especially when she is down—as does the whole family. Each episodic chapter confronts Ryan with a situation; intermittently funny, frustrating, and touching, they should be familiar and accessible to readers, as when Ryan fumbles her Easter speech despite careful practice. Ryan, her family, and friends are black, and Watson continues to bring visibility to both Portland, Oregon, generally and its black community specifically, making another wonderful contribution that allows black readers to see themselves and all readers to find a character they can love.
Move over Ramona Quimby, Portland has another neighbor you have to meet! (Fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: April 28, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0056-4
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Jan. 21, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2020
Categories: CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY
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