May 29, 2000
Gr 3-5-Originally published by L' ecole des loisirs in 1992 (ISBN 2211-01209-4), this is a fun story that will resonate with girls in upper elementary school. The language of the translated text is smooth and nicely captures very well the speech patterns for this group. Some of the universal themes covered are self-doubt, mercurial changes of opinion, the rise and fall of friendships over short periods of time, preoccupation with clothing, and more. Maria is a hip preteen awash in all of the age-appropriate trials and tribulations. Her mother throws a surprise birthday party for her and invites everyone in her class. What a nightmarei Everybody shows up her friends; her enemies; the weird, smelly kid; and even the boy on whom she has a major crush and who is paying way too much attention to another girl. It's all too much for Maria. After several amusing debacles, the various guests sort themselves out and everyone has a good time. Even the smelly kid turns out to be a great new friend. Aside from the fascinating party scenes, readers will also learn that Maria is being raised mostly by her mom because her dad is away working in Canada a real-life situation that many readers will be able to relate to. The blocky b&w illustrations are simple yet add to the humor of the book. Highly recommended for all collections. Maria Otero-Boisvert, Criticas