An exciting romp full of good advice and featuring a fun protagonist.
A fat boy battles bullies in a tale full of villains, heroes, bullies, and good guys.
Maxwell Tercero is 11 and in his first year of middle school—where he finds that, just like elementary school, things are no fun for a fat kid. He is mercilessly and cruelly bullied by older students, led by popular eighth grade athlete Johnny “Johnny Pro” Properzi, and while Max doesn’t necessarily want to hurt Johnny, he does want to give him a sense of the pain he’s causing. Max eventually reaches out to incarcerated supervillain Maximo “Master Plan” Marconius III, who is also fat and who agrees to help Max change his life, inside and out. Master Plan helps Max along his own journey to body positivity, as well as toward victory over the bullies, with some very good advice. However, this help does not come without strings attached, and things rapidly spin out of control for Max, his friends, and others. Body positivity is usually the province of books about girls, so it is refreshing to see the focus here on a boy. Master Plan understands what it’s like to be dismissed as the fat kid, and his advice is so good it is a shame that he is writing from prison. Main characters read as White.
An exciting romp full of good advice and featuring a fun protagonist. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Jan. 25, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06-300803-8
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Move over Ramona Quimby, Portland has another neighbor you have to meet!
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. 20, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2020
A valiant call for justice.
A girl from a Mumbai slum defends the right to water.
Minni may only be 12, but she’s already well aware of how water issues in her neighborhood affect the health and safety of the people around her. While her brother, Sanjay, left school after 10th grade in order to work in a restaurant, Minni dreams of finishing school and getting a good job. But when Minni, Sanjay, and two of their friends witness water being stolen from their community, their families are terrified that the thieves will retaliate against the children. After Minni’s mother comes down with an illness that leaves her unable to go to work as a servant in one of the city’s high-rise buildings, she suggests Minni take her place while she recovers. Minni is thrust into a world of wealth and privilege and develops an uneasy friendship with the daughter of the house. It comes as a shock when she discovers the source of the water thefts is closer than she could have imagined. In this poignant, relatable work, Bajaj expertly depicts class and wealth differences; Minni’s worries for her mother and anger at the injustices inflicted on her community are especially moving.
A valiant call for justice. (author's note) (Realistic fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: July 19, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35439-1
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
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