Be Real, Macy Weaver

After getting caught in a lie, South Carolina fifth grader Macy Weaver has lost another friend and is anticipating a dreadful summer alone. But when her mother is accepted to the University of Maryland and they have to move, Macy is ecstatic for a new start, one in which no one knows her history of mistruths. “Making friends was kind of hard” for Macy, whose “creepy-crawlies,” or anxieties (which recur around “struggling to figure out just the right words and just the right way to say things”), compel her to keep her truths close to the vest. Attempting to make friends, however, causes Macy’s anxieties to take over, and she tells her new friends that her mother is not a psychology student, but a famous fashion photographer. As Macy’s lies unravel, and it looks like her past friendship breakups are destined to repeat themselves, she must learn that being oneself is the only authentic way to cultivate real connections. Wilson (Who Is Colin Kaepernick?) sensitively navigates anxiety and the societal pressures associated with belonging and making friends in this lighthearted volume with a predominantly Black cast. Ages 8–12. Agent: Melanie Figueroa, Root Literary. (July)