A sequel that packs as much heart, humor, and understanding as the first.
Stepsisters Naomi E. and Naomi Marie face many changes and challenges in their multiracial, blended family life in this sequel to Two Naomis (2016).
Having the same first name is the least of their challenges. Naomi E. and her father are white; Naomi Marie, her mother, and her younger sister are black. All of them are very intentional about making their new blended family work. But as the Naomis struggle to adjust to their family life, they must also find their places as new sixth graders at a nontraditional school located in a gentrifying Brooklyn neighborhood. “Big family, new house, little privacy”—Naomi E.’s six-word memoir for her creative-writing assignment—captures how she’s feeling. And to make matters worse, she worries that her father and stepmother expect her to be as academically confident and self-assured as Naomi Marie. Meanwhile, Naomi Marie faces racism at their supposedly progressive school, and she’s frustrated that Naomi E. doesn’t understand how she’s feeling. Issues of identity, social justice, and race are explored with sensitivity and a deep understanding of the interior lives of middle school girls. At times a little too heavy on the girls’ emotional processing of their experiences, the story nonetheless offers a realistic portrait of the kinds of uncomfortable and thoughtful conversations about family, community, social justice, and privilege that many young people are having—or should be having—with their families and friends.
A sequel that packs as much heart, humor, and understanding as the first. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 11, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-268515-5
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 29, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs.
The Heffley family’s house undergoes a disastrous attempt at home improvement.
When Great Aunt Reba dies, she leaves some money to the family. Greg’s mom calls a family meeting to determine what to do with their share, proposing home improvements and then overruling the family’s cartoonish wish lists and instead pushing for an addition to the kitchen. Before bringing in the construction crew, the Heffleys attempt to do minor maintenance and repairs themselves—during which Greg fails at the work in various slapstick scenes. Once the professionals are brought in, the problems keep getting worse: angry neighbors, terrifying problems in walls, and—most serious—civil permitting issues that put the kibosh on what work’s been done. Left with only enough inheritance to patch and repair the exterior of the house—and with the school’s dismal standardized test scores as a final straw—Greg’s mom steers the family toward moving, opening up house-hunting and house-selling storylines (and devastating loyal Rowley, who doesn’t want to lose his best friend). While Greg’s positive about the move, he’s not completely uncaring about Rowley’s action. (And of course, Greg himself is not as unaffected as he wishes.) The gags include effectively placed callbacks to seemingly incidental events (the “stress lizard” brought in on testing day is particularly funny) and a lampoon of after-school-special–style problem books. Just when it seems that the Heffleys really will move, a new sequence of chaotic trouble and property destruction heralds a return to the status quo. Whew.
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 8-12)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3903-3
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2019
SEEN & HEARD
A warm bundle of holiday cheer.
In a funny, feel-good tale, 12-year-old twins separated at birth meet by chance and try to pull off a family switch during the December holidays.
The girls, who are cued white, agree that it would be a delicious prank, but each has a personal motive, too: Aviva Davis, who was adopted by a culturally Jewish mom and a Black dad who was raised Christian, wonders what it’s like to celebrate Christmas. Budding author Holly Martin, who was adopted by a white-presenting single mom, sees a golden opportunity to gather experiences for a school writing assignment about facing her fears. In a plot as sweet as a Hanukkah jelly doughnut and twisty as a Christmas cinnamon roll, the pair just manages to bail one another out of a string of sticky situations—both hilarious and otherwise. They both learn something of the customs and meaning of the two holidays while working through tears and laughter—not to mention conflicts sparked by their very different personalities. Everything culminates in a holiday performance at a local senior center that will have readers rising up to cheer them on. Though their history remains tantalizingly mysterious, for the protagonists, who narrate alternating chapters, it’s mission accomplished and more: Aviva emerges feeling more secure in her Jewish identity, while anxious Holly discovers unexpected depths of courage.
A warm bundle of holiday cheer. (song lyrics) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Oct. 29, 2024
ISBN: 9781250360670
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
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