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INTERMEDIATE FICTION
Glaser, Karina Yan

The Vanderbeekers to the Rescue

354 pp. | Houghton | September, 2019 | Trade ISBN 978-1-328-57757-3 $16.99 | Ebook ISBN 978-0-358-16211-7
(2) 4-6 A big family, lots of pets, harried loving parents, a chaotic house, a supporting cast of eccentrics, a seemingly intractable problem in which kids save the day--in this, the third outing for the Vanderbeeker family of Harlem (The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street, rev. 11/17, and sequel), Glaser ticks all the boxes of a classic middle-grade ensemble piece. The five Vanderbeeker children, established in previous books as ingenious and energetic, apply their particular skills to outwitting a new antagonist--City Hall--when an inspector closes down their mother's cookie-making business. In a single crammed week of spring break--which also includes building a treehouse, solving a mystery (who is dropping off abandoned animals at their home every night?), and an important violin audition--these genial children organize an inventive new family-business plan. At one point in the novel ten-year-old Oliver needs a story "where he knew everything would turn out all right." This is that story. It's funny, with character-grounded quirkiness, just enough slapstick, and no winking over kids' heads. The adults in their supportive urban community are benevolent but objects of some pity: "Being an adult is awful," declares thirteen-year-old Jessie. The whole thing is a little retro, very welcoming to the reader, and sweet to the core.
Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2020

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