Ruby was born in an unspecified part of Africa, later ending up on display in the mall, where she met Ivan, Bob, and Julia. Luckily, she can confide in her Uncle Ivan, who is next door in Gorilla World, and Uncle Bob, the dog who lives nearby with human friend Julia. She’s apprehensive about her Tuskday, a rite of passage for young elephants when she’ll give a speech in front of the rest of the herd. In this follow-up to 2020’s The One and Only Bob, Ruby the elephant is still living at Wildworld Zoological Park and Sanctuary. Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs. 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. (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. While Greg’s positive about the move, he’s not completely uncaring about Rowley’s action. 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). 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. 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. 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. When Great Aunt Reba dies, she leaves some money to the family. The Heffley family’s house undergoes a disastrous attempt at home improvement. Maggie and her family read as South Asian brown-skinned Clara has two moms, one of Maggie’s older sisters has a girlfriend, and the girls’ school is multiethnic.Īn accessible, compassionate story of growth and learning. This is a thoughtful and engaging account of a preteen navigating mental illness in a world that leaves her constantly doubting herself. The depiction of OCD is thoughtful, and the lively, expressive illustrations show Maggie’s stress and worry-as well as many moments of fun with her new friends. ![]() Maggie’s character is well developed, and her arc shows what living with mental illness can look like day to day. Maggie is reluctant, but her therapist is reassuring and supportive. ![]() She also internalizes pressure to live up to her older sisters’ seemingly unattainable achievements, even as her caring family recognizes that her struggles go beyond the ordinary and that she may benefit from therapy. ![]() Most of all, Maggie often holds herself back because she fears things will go awry if the number on the die isn’t favorable. On the one hand, she quickly makes a new friend, Clara, who encourages her to join the RPG club-but on the other hand, she encounters bullies, and mastering all the new routines can feel intimidating. Maggie Sankhar is both excited and nervous to be starting sixth grade. Maggie enters middle school and soon realizes that the 20-sided die she rolls to make decisions doesn’t always work.
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