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Synopsis
A surprising friendship
Do you ever feel like you’ve somehow lost your true best friend? Minn feels this way. So does Jake. But Minn and Jake have no intention of being friends. Minn’s a string bean. Jake’s a shrimp. Minn’s a girl. Jake’s a boy. And in fifth grade, who wants a best friend of the opposite sex? But Minn and Jake are forced together by circumstances, which only strengthen their resistance . . . until Minn takes Jake lizard hunting. There are lots of good ways to choose a friend.
This enchanting free-verse novel, accompanied by expressive, humorous black-and-white drawings, proves that sometimes friendship just happens.
Publishers Weekly
This breezy free-verse novel introduces memorable characters in recognizable situations. Spunky Minn, who is "pigtailed/ and lizardy/ and an only child/ the only only child in her class," recently lost her best friend to another girl. And as for the kindergarten-size new kid, "Jake knows/ everyone is staring at him/ because he is so short,/ and maybe also/ because he has a new spiky haircut/ that he never asked for/ that makes him look/ like a baby crow." As the two protagonists struggle to make friends, Minn tries to teach the cowardly Jake to catch lizards, while Jake shows Minn how to make a fast buck. Throughout, the cast of fifth-graders teases and gossips convincingly. Fans of Wong should not expect the refined and literary poetry of her Night Garden; these prose-like entries will invite quick, light reading. Cate's b&w illustrations achieve unusual dimension. Incorporating what seem to be collage elements, her strikingly graphic compositions mirror the deceptive ease of the verse narration. Ages 7-10. (Aug.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.