A Clases Otra Vez, Mallory

Grade 3-7-In this sequel to Mallory on the Move (Carolrhoda, 2004), Mallory McDonald starts third grade at a new school in a new town, away from her best friend and her old life. To make matters worse, her mother is the new music teacher. To top it all off, Mallory goes to school on the first day with nail polish stuck to her face; then she gets the part of an eggplant in her mother's Fall Festival. The eight-year-old cleverly pins blame for the nail polish on her cat; but when she pretends to break a leg onstage to avoid performing, she sets up a dramatic, emotional episode that will leave kids holding their breaths to see the repercussions of her actions. This beginning chapter book has large, friendly print and fun, accessible illustrations showing easily identifiable emotions and situations. Friedman's engaging writing style makes for enjoyable reading and, despite Mallory's problems, there is a foundation of happiness within the novel that encourages readers and makes them want to hear more of the child's story. [This Spanish translation reads well enough. However, an obvious-and rather major-editorial blunder allows English and Spanish grammatical rules to blend in this book, where readers will find quotation marks and dialogue dashes appear in the same sentences. This diminishes the overall appeal of this school-themed title, which is quite unfortunate, as there is a definite need for Spanish language titles for this age group.--Ed.] School Library Journal.