NOT STARRING ZADIE LOUISE

A 10-year-old spends the summer inadvertently wreaking havoc at her mother’s children’s theater.

Aspiring astronaut Zadie Louise Gonzalez hoped to spend the summer at a science camp and taekwondo classes, but her music teacher father’s new gig driving for a ride-share app means she and her older sister, Lulu, must accompany their mom to the Bainbridge Youth Theater camp she runs. That’s good news for Lulu, who loves acting, but Zadie only likes the technical aspects of the theater, and kids aren’t allowed to assist with sets, costumes, lights, props, or sound. After freezing when it was time for her to audition, Zadie accepts boring duties like stuffing envelopes and setting out snacks. She also observes (and idolizes) the overqualified new stage manager, Ana María, who has a no-kids-in-the-sound-booth policy. Despite causing a series of mishaps and minor catastrophes, as well as dealing with news that her beloved grandma might be moving from the Pacific Northwest to Florida, Zadie finds a way to fit in at the theater and accept her family’s new normal. McCullough adeptly gives voice to a plucky, STEM-focused bicultural girl growing up in an intergenerational family whose members work through their problems together. Zadie’s father is from Guatemala; her mother’s side is cued as White and American, and there is diversity in the supporting cast.

An entertaining and moving story about family, friendship, and finding your place.