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THE STEPMOM SHAKE-UP by Niki Lenz

THE STEPMOM SHAKE-UP

by Niki Lenz

Pub Date: June 16th, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-984892-54-6
Publisher: Random House

A story of changing family dynamics and a child’s struggle to keep family life the same.

Ever since Grace’s mom passed away three years ago, it has been her and her minister dad, Davy, on their own. Grace thinks their happy family is perfectly fine with the two of them. However, Davy’s Baptist congregation has other opinions about their pastor being single. At the congregation’s instigation, Davy turns into a dating man, and Grace has something to say about that. With the help of her best friend, Bea, Grace manages to sabotage her dad’s many dates, often in slapstick fashion. While her dad does not seem to realize why his dates are not successful, Grace’s teacher, Miss O’Connor, catches on pretty quickly, and all of a sudden she becomes an important part of Grace’s life. Soon it’s Grace trying to set her dad up on dates instead of destroying them. With sympathy and humor, Lenz paints a realistic picture of a young adolescent facing sudden change. Grace’s world is a largely white and well-to-do one, but it is refreshing to see a happy, well-adjusted preacher’s kid whose faith feels genuine, not forced.

A funny, sympathetic look at a kid grappling with family change.

(Fiction. 8-12)