As the fall semester of her sixth grade year winds down, Penina’s woes overshadow any Hanukkah celebration. Her beloved teacher, Mrs. Brown, is unexpectedly resigning, and her best friend, Zozo, is going on vacation, leaving Penina with nothing to do except dodge Mimsy, her annoyingly cute, pesky little sister. Behind in creating presents for her family, Penina wishes the eight nights of candle lighting would reflect more on the meaning of the holiday’s remembrance of the Maccabees’ struggle than gift-giving, at least until she is ready. And when Grandma tries to support Penina’s cantankerous and moody behavior by claiming to her exasperated mother that Penina is “Grandma’s revenge,” the remark sparks a hurtful misunderstanding—fortunately followed by a quick reconciliation with hugs, kisses and potato pancakes. As she struggles to understand her immediate world, Penina draws strength from her close friendship and family support. In this prequel to 2007’s Penina Levine Is a Hard-Boiled Egg, O’Connell’s feisty, endearing tween character allows readers a glimpse into a typical Jewish-American modern household. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-59643-213-0
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The second installment in this spirited series is a hit.
A new baby coming means Ryan has lots of opportunities to grow love.
Ryan has so much to look forward to this summer—she is going to be a big sister, and she finally gets to go to church camp! But new adventures bring challenges, too. Ryan feels like the baby is taking forever to arrive, and with Mom on bed rest, she isn’t able to participate in the family’s typical summer activities. Ryan’s Dad is still working the late shift, which means he gets home and goes to bed when she and her older brother, Ray, are waking up, so their quality daddy-daughter time is limited to one day a week. When the time for camp finally arrives, Ryan is so worried about bugs, ghosts, and sharing a cabin that she wonders if she should go at all. Watson’s heroine is smart and courageous, bringing her optimistic attitude to any challenge she faces. Hard topics like family finances and complex relationships with friends are discussed in an age-appropriate way. Watson continues to excel at crafting a sense of place; she transports readers to Portland, Oregon, with an attention to detail that can only come from someone who has loved that city. Ryan, her family, and friends are Black, and occasional illustrations by Mata spotlight their joy and make this book shine.
The second installment in this spirited series is a hit. (Fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: April 27, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0058-8
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
Readers will enjoy this sequel from a plot perspective and will learn how to play-act a trial, though they may not engage...
This sequel to The Lemonade War (2007), picking up just a few days later, focuses on how the fourth graders take justice into their own hands after learning that the main suspect in the case of the missing lemonade-stand money now owns the latest in game-box technology.
Siblings Evan and Jessie (who skipped third grade because of her precocity) are sure Scott Spencer stole the $208 from Evan’s shorts and want revenge, especially as Scott’s new toy makes him the most popular kid in class, despite his personal shortcomings. Jessie’s solution is to orchestrate a full-blown trial by jury after school, while Evan prefers to challenge Scott in basketball. Neither channel proves satisfactory for the two protagonists (whose rational and emotional reactions are followed throughout the third-person narrative), though, ultimately, the matter is resolved. Set during the week of Yom Kippur, the story raises beginning questions of fairness, integrity, sin and atonement. Like John Grisham's Theodore Boone, Kid Lawyer (2010), much of the book is taken up with introducing courtroom proceedings for a fourth-grade level of understanding. Chapter headings provide definitions (“due diligence,” “circumstantial evidence,” etc.) and explanation cards/documents drawn by Jessie are interspersed.
Readers will enjoy this sequel from a plot perspective and will learn how to play-act a trial, though they may not engage with the characters enough to care about how the justice actually pans out. (Fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: May 2, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-27967-1
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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