(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. Wren's reluctance to tell her classmates about her parents' divorce leads to lie after lie, and her deception complicates new and old friendships. Nine-year-old Wren's juvenile understanding and frequent questions, along with her parents' realistic and palatably mild imperfections, make this quiet, often funny story an accessible look at divorce for early-middle-grade readers. Simple black-and-white spot art introduces each chapter.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. The latest installments find "unfortunately average" sixth grader Vicka joining the softball team, despite a lack of talent (Curveball), and helping organize a Wild West–themed school dance, adding an element of prospective romance to the story arc (Dance). The series is run-of-the-mill, but, as ever, Vicka makes up in creativity and warmth what she perceives she lacks in brilliance or distinction. Activities appended. Glos. Review covers these Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average titles: Curveball and Dance Fever.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(3) 4-6 Wren's reluctance to tell her classmates about her parents' divorce leads to lie after lie, and her deception complicates new and old friendships. Nine-year-old Wren's juvenile understanding and frequent questions, along with her parents' realistic and palatably mild imperfections, make this quiet, often funny story an accessible look at divorce for early-middle-grade readers. Simple black-and-white spot art introduces each chapter.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. Sixth grader Victoria Torres's aspirations and her reality don't usually align. In these volumes, she's cast as Friar Laurence, not Juliet, in Romeo and Juliet (Drama); and she refuses to engage in dirty politics during class elections and might have to accept a lesser office (President). Believable ethical situations and a thoughtful heroine add appeal to otherwise pat middle-school fare. Activities appended. Glos. Review covers the following Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average titles: So Much Drama and Vicka for President.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. Sixth grader Victoria Torres's aspirations and her reality don't usually align. In these volumes, she's cast as Friar Laurence, not Juliet, in Romeo and Juliet (Drama); and she refuses to engage in dirty politics during class elections and might have to accept a lesser office (President). Believable ethical situations and a thoughtful heroine add appeal to otherwise pat middle-school fare. Activities appended. Glos. Review covers the following Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average titles: So Much Drama and Vicka for President.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. These first installments each, as the series title suggests, focus on a sixth-grade girl whose unremarkable-ness in various arenas of middle school (from math to cheerleading to music) serves as a source of tension. In each case, Victoria predictably discovers that she can stand out in other ways--by being a good friend, for example. Unremarkable but relatable middle-school fare. Review covers these Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average titles: Birthday Glamour, Face the Music, Formula for Friends, and Pompom Problems.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. These first installments each, as the series title suggests, focus on a sixth-grade girl whose unremarkable-ness in various arenas of middle school (from math to cheerleading to music) serves as a source of tension. In each case, Victoria predictably discovers that she can stand out in other ways--by being a good friend, for example. Unremarkable but relatable middle-school fare. Review covers these Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average titles: Birthday Glamour, Face the Music, Formula for Friends, and Pompom Problems.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. These first installments each, as the series title suggests, focus on a sixth-grade girl whose unremarkable-ness in various arenas of middle school (from math to cheerleading to music) serves as a source of tension. In each case, Victoria predictably discovers that she can stand out in other ways--by being a good friend, for example. Unremarkable but relatable middle-school fare. Review covers these Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average titles: Birthday Glamour, Face the Music, Formula for Friends, and Pompom Problems.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average series. These first installments each, as the series title suggests, focus on a sixth-grade girl whose unremarkable-ness in various arenas of middle school (from math to cheerleading to music) serves as a source of tension. In each case, Victoria predictably discovers that she can stand out in other ways--by being a good friend, for example. Unremarkable but relatable middle-school fare. Review covers these Victoria Torres, Unfortunately Average titles: Birthday Glamour, Face the Music, Formula for Friends, and Pompom Problems.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) 4-6 Friends for Keeps series. Elizabeth, Ida May's former best friend who moved away, joins the gang at camp--but Ida has a hard time forgiving Liz for not staying in touch and their rift affects the entire bunk. The characters in this series remain unmemorable, but the girls' week full of typical summer activities is diverting and the friendship struggles ring true.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(4) 4-6 Friends for Keeps series. Ida May gains a new appreciation for bossy Jenna while helping her family out during Jenna's mom's risky pregnancy. Meanwhile, all the fourth-grade girls try to get Jenna and Brooke to mend their rift. Valid truths about the ups and downs of friendship are undermined by the underdrawn cast of characters that makes it hard to remember which girl is which.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(4) 4-6 Friends for Keeps series. The changing nature of elementary school friendships is explored via the girls in Ida May's fourth-grade class. After Jenna brings a truth or dare game into school, Ida May ends up on the outs with the gang. The secondary characters aren't particularly memorable, but readers may relate to Ida May's plight.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(4) 4-6 Friends for Keeps series. Ida May has so much fun with her new best friend, Stacey. They even form a secret club after finding a mermaid night-light they think grants wishes. But when Stacey begins to stretch the truth with her "imagining," it puts Ida May in a tough position. Though didacticism creeps in, the story sensitively describes the push and pull of fourth-grade friendships.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(4) 4-6 Friends for Keeps series. This painfully accurate account of the trials and emotions of fourth-grade girls only manages to fully develop one character, but Ida successfully carries the story herself. While the very end slips into a moral lesson that diminishes the authenticity of Ida's previous experiences, the notes between Ida and a friend that punctuate the latter half of the book are entertaining.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth