(2) 4-6 Misfits series. Illustrated by Dan Santat. In this series opener, twelve-year-old Olive Cobin Zang is a lonely homebody who feels invisible and uncool. She doesn't play sports and is only good at things she thinks nobody else cares about: board games, trapeze, acrobatics, and tightrope walking. She loves Meggie & Her Fun Family comic books, which portray a lively family's adventures and home-cooked meals -- most unlike her own family. Her parents are always traveling for business, and now they have shipped her off to the Reforming Arts School -- RASCH -- near San Francisco. A former castle turned prison, the building is now a school (think Alcatraz meets Hogwarts) for the "artistically adventurous." Among the other misfits Olive finds she's a good fit, at least within the team of crime-fighting preteens assembled to thwart an expected jewel heist on campus. This reunion of Yee and Santat (Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally), rev. 9/09; Bobby the Brave (Sometimes), rev. 9/10) offers an entertaining mystery with good kids working together to defeat the bad guys and, in the process, finding their place in the world. Conversational prose, offbeat similes ("Emotions swirled like a smoothie in a blender"), and Santat's black-and-white illustrations (final art not seen) add up to a madcap escapade featuring likable heroes and dastardly villains. Readers will look forward to further installments.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2024

(1) 4-6 Eleven-year-old Maizy and her mother leave fast-paced Los Angeles to spend the summer in languorous Last Chance, Minnesota. Oma and Opa, Maizy's grandparents, own Golden Palace, the only Chinese restaurant in the area. Although she finds life in the Midwest boring at first, Maizy begins to make friends and connect more deeply with her family. As she spends time with her sick grandfather, Maizy learns about the history of those who came before her--in particular, her great-great-grandfather Lucky, whose fascinating life story is told in interspersed flashbacks. As Maizy learns about Lucky's struggles against racism, she also confronts microaggressions and hate crimes that still plague Last Chance. Told through the eyes of a spirited and likable protagonist, the story explores evergreen issues of immigration, intergenerational trauma, and the many dark aspects of U.S. history alongside Lucky's adventures with "sailing ships, outlaws, and a gold mountain." Through this captivating story of the Chen family legacy, Yee (Millicent Min, Girl Genius, rev. 9/03; The Kidney Hypothetical, rev. 5/15) makes the personal political, and prompts readers to consider what it means to be American.

Reviewer: Gabi K. Huesca | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022

(4) 4-6 DC Super Hero Girls series. When tech-savvy Barbara Gordon, a.k.a. Batgirl, is offered a spot at Super Hero High, she's ready to prove herself. And Samurai superhero Katana must protect the hundred ancient Samurai swords mysteriously entrusted to her. These appealing series entries both focus on family and finding your place. While plot twists are predictable, there is a good mix of school problems and superhero adventure. Review covers these DC Super Hero Girls titles: Batgirl at Super Hero High and Katana at Super Hero High.

Reviewer: Lauren Chambers

(4) 4-6 DC Super Hero Girls series. When tech-savvy Barbara Gordon, a.k.a. Batgirl, is offered a spot at Super Hero High, she's ready to prove herself. And Samurai superhero Katana must protect the hundred ancient Samurai swords mysteriously entrusted to her. These appealing series entries both focus on family and finding your place. While plot twists are predictable, there is a good mix of school problems and superhero adventure. Review covers these DC Super Hero Girls titles: Batgirl at Super Hero High and Katana at Super Hero High.

Reviewer: Lauren Chambers

(4) 4-6 DC Super Hero Girls series. While adjusting to a new school, Wonder Woman and Supergirl both face challenges, ranging from bullying to self-doubt to alien invasion. The plot twists are predictable, and both books focus more on traditional school issues than on super-hero action. Still, these lighthearted and fast-paced tales, full of cameos by well-known and obscure heroes, will have wide appeal. Review covers the following DC Super Hero Girls titles: Supergirl at Super Hero High and Wonder Woman at Super Hero High.

Reviewer: Lauren Chambers

(4) 4-6 DC Super Hero Girls series. While adjusting to a new school, Wonder Woman and Supergirl both face challenges, ranging from bullying to self-doubt to alien invasion. The plot twists are predictable, and both books focus more on traditional school issues than on super-hero action. Still, these lighthearted and fast-paced tales, full of cameos by well-known and obscure heroes, will have wide appeal. Review covers the following DC Super Hero Girls titles: Supergirl at Super Hero High and Wonder Woman at Super Hero High.

Reviewer: Lauren Chambers

(2) YA High-school senior Higgs Boson Bing loses his girlfriend, his best friend, his popularity, and his future at Harvard all in one week. Higgs wins readers over with his genuine surprise at discovering he's a self-centered jerk; flashbacks hint that deep down he's a decent guy. The satisfying ending, in which Higgs quickly makes amends, is a fitting whirlwind of a conclusion.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2015

(2) 4-6 Readers of Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time will remember this book's narrator, Marley Sandelski, as the best friend Stanford left behind. Marley feels like a nobody, invisible to everyone except bullies who torment him. Yee admirably keeps the topic of bullying a realistically complicated one; also particularly well handled is fast-runner Marley's surprisingly difficult decision about whether to join the track team.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2011

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Dan Santat. In this follow-up to Bobby vs. Girls (Accidentally), Bobby Ellis-Chan's PE teacher expects great things of him. Overhearing his ex-football star dad say, "He's not like me," Bobby assumes he's let Dad down with his nonexistent football skills. Everything works out for both father and son in this sequel that will please Bobby's fans and win over new ones.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2010

(2) YA Maybe runs away to California in search of her birth father; she has many reasons to leave (e.g., her serial-bride mother's fiancé's attempt to rape her). The book continues in a much lighter vein and ends on a happy, wacky note, with well-drawn characters providing much of the humor. Maybe's search takes her to unexpected places, and readers will enjoy the ride.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2009

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Dan Santat. Nine-year-old Bobby Ellis-Chan has been best friends with Holly since babyhood. The story of how they lose then rediscover their friendship is told here with plenty of humor. While Yee rarely deviates from Bobby's viewpoint, both boys and girls will find much to relate to. The book features Santat's frequent, amusing full-page illustrations and an invitingly spacious page layout.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2009

(3) 4-6 Her friends have had their say (Millicent Min, Girl Genius; Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time), and now it's Emily's turn. Readers of the first two amusing books will enjoy hearing the same story--about friendly new-girl Emily, friendless prodigy Millicent, and academically challenged basketball star Stanford--told this time from Emily's point of view through letters she writes to her dad.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(2) 4-6 Millicent may be a girl genius, but outside of academics she's not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. Readers will laugh and groan at her ultra-geeky efforts to fit in (granted, it's awkward being the only eleven-year-old in the eleventh grade). In this smartly funny debut novel, Millicent finds that she doesn't know everything and learns some crucial lessons about friendship and trust.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2003