JORAH'S JOURNAL

Caseley (Witch Mama, 1996, etc.) presents a hurried-up, condensed look at the first days of a third-grader in her new home. Jorah usually loves the rain, but not on moving day. She can't splash in the puddles with her friend Sami because she is saying good-bye to her familiar city apartment and hello to a large house with a backyard and crickets inside. Her mother has her hands full with Jorah's kindergarten-age brother, Caleb, so Jorah is on her own as the new girl: She's the one wearing weird shoes, and the one with fig bars in her lunch that no one wants to share. When Caleb gets sick at school, Jorah rises to the occasion until her mother can come get him, but her misery later increases as Caleb is coddled even more. Jorah records her woes in a journal, including her expectation that her birthday, days away, will be the worst ever. An unexpected visit from one of her classmates begins to set things right. Anyone who has been the new kid will understand exactly how Jorah feels, but Caseley also executes a subtle portrayal of the big sister/little brother relationship as well. The resolution comes too easily, cramming all of Jorah's adjustment period into just a few days, but her predicament will still ring true for emerging readers. (Fiction. 7+)