Picture Day

April 8, 2013
With a big dose of personal style, a girl named Melissa Abigail Rose (“But everyone calls her ‘Missy’ ”) helps kick off the Branches line of illustrated early chapter books. Missy is the sort of girl who likes dressing up her cat as much as she enjoys dressing herself, and her disaster zone of a bedroom is an early indication that she’s ruled by her id. She’s especially excited about school picture day, and she tests no fewer than a dozen outfits before settling on one that includes a plaid skirt, “super duper fuzzy hat” with earflaps, glow-in-the-dark ring, and pink cowboy boots. Missy’s mother, however, has a more traditional blouse-and-suspendered-skirt combo in mind, putting Missy in a foul mood until a solution presents itself, thanks to a classmate who’s as introverted as Missy is outgoing. Nees’s full-color cartoons appear throughout, keeping up with Missy’s energy and the bustle and activity of an elementary-school classroom. Three more Missy titles will follow later in the year, and four additional Branches series from David Lubar, Andrew Joyner, and others launch simultaneously. Ages 5–7.

August 1, 2013

Gr 1-3-Two beginning chapter books. Girlie girls will flock to My Stylish Life, in which details of Kiki's day-to-day adventures are revealed in diary style, complete with doodles and black-and-white drawings. The child and her friends form a club to do crafts, bake, and have sleepovers. Readers can continue the adventures from Lotus Lane in the books about the other club members. Add this one if journal/diary-style books are popular. The second book is easier than the first, and has less text. Missy can't wait for picture day. Her outfit will have "belts that glitter, tights with stripes, and shoes that shine." Full-color cartoons capture her fashion style with ruffles, bling, and even goggles. However, when the big day arrives, Missy's mom has another idea about her picture-day outfit. Pouty, angry, and sad, the child is sent off to school without "ruffles, rainbows, ribbons, or sparkles." After a few arguments with her classmate Oscar over trading chocolate pudding for carrots at lunch, it's finally time for the picture, and what Missy and Oscar end up wearing will surprise children. Plenty of drawings assist readers with plot development between panels, spreads, brief narrative, and captions. Speech bubbles are scattered throughout to enhance character development. Fans of Junie B., Eloise, and Ivy and Bean will laugh out loud as they follow Missy's adventures.-Melissa Smith, Royal Oak Public Library, MI

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