Penny Draws a Team Sport by Sara Shepard - ADVISABLE

Penny Draws a Team Sport by Sara Shepard, 218 pages DOODLE FICTION Putnam (Penguin), 2025. $15 

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE 

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL 

Penny Lowry is a 5th grader who is an artist, not an athlete. Her PE teacher has proposed a pickleball tournament to raise money for an animal shelter. Penny reluctantly signs up with the rest of her class and her buddy Rocco. They make a pact not to take the game too seriously, which works out fine until Rocco discovers he's really good at pickleball. Now Penny is worried she'll let down Rocco and the whole school with her playing. 

There is some nice humor and Shepard captures elementary school angst well. I wish the art and the captions were bigger so I could read them easier. That said, this is along the lines of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" format but with more text, making it a deeper read. Students should be able to relate to Penny's anxiety and nervousness about not being good at something as well as studying for end of year testing. Race isn't mentioned, and it's difficult to tell what anyone's ethnicity is from the line drawings. 

Michelle in the Middle 

Ivy Newt and the Storm Witch by Derek Keilty and Magda Brol - ADVISABLE

Ivy Newt and the Storm Witch by Derek Keilty and Magda Brol, 165 pages. CHAPTER BOOK. Scallywag Press (Lerner), 2025. $18

Content: G (mild danger)

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SOME

On Ivy Newt’s birthday, her King and Queen parents vanish in a violent flash. Unsure what to do, Ivy and her familiar Tom Wolf venture out in search of clues. Along the way they find a new friend whose father has also disappeared.  Together the trio may be able to solve the mystery. 

Welcome to the magic kingdom of Miracula.  Highly illustrated, the book is a quick read for a newly independent reader. Ivy Newt’s age is unspecified, but probably 8-10yo. 

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

The Quest of Danger by Stuart Gibbs and Stacy Curtis - OPTIONAL

The Quest of Danger (Once Upon a Tim #4) by Stuart Gibbs, illustrated by Stacy Curtis, 162 pages. Simon & Schuster, 2023. $1. 9781665917476

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - OPTIONAL

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Tim, a knight in training, and his friends are saved from falling to their deaths only to be thrown into a new quest. King Neptuna needs help getting his trident back from the knights who stole it. On their journey they encounter vicious beasts, pirates and their nemesis, Prince Ruprecht.

The quest story was fun and well paced. I liked that big words were used and defined (referred to as IQ boosters in the book). The illustrations are great and add to the overall experience. 

The ages of the four main characters are not mentioned. The publisher lists the audience age as 7 to 10 and 4th to 6th grade. Throughout the book Princess Grace expressed her interest in and attraction to Belinda. This theme does not really fit for the target age or the quest theme and feels forced.

The ethnicity of the characters is not mentioned.

Reviewer: A. Snow, Librarian

New Powers Every 24 Hours by Mary Winn Heider and Chad Sell - ESSENTIAL

New Powers Every 24 Hours (The Stupendous Switcheroo #1) by Mary Winn Heider and Chad Sell. DOODLEBOOK. Alfred A. Knopf (Random), 2023. $14. 9780593427309

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ESSENTIAL

APPEALS TO:MANY

8yo Switcheroo wakes up one morning to find he has the superpower of telekinesis. He is so excited. He immediately wants to contact his hero, Vin Valor, and ask to be his sidekick. Switch's mom is away on a business trip and he has a robot for a babysitter. He slips out of the house to take on a supervillain to impress Vin Valor. Things don't go quite as planned. Then Switch finds that he wakes up every morning with a different superpower, some more useful than others. Switch tries to contact his mom and after several days decides something is very wrong. Together with some new unlikely friends, Switch works out a plan to find and save his mom.

A great superhero adventure chapter book that is enhanced by short, comic-style drawings mixed in with the text. It is fun to imagine having a new superpower every day.  The story is funny, fast-paced and entertaining. It will appeal to reluctant and avid readers alike. It ends on a cliffhanger so be sure to have all the books in the series on your shelf.

Reviewer: A. Snow, Librarian