Happily Ever Emma

January 1, 2011

Gr 2-4-In this installment, Emma must share her mother's attention with a new boyfriend. When she tries to wreck a date with a teensy lie (truth omission, really), she learns a difficult life lesson about feelings of guilt in a gentle and funny way. This easy-to-read chapter book is appealing and realistic, and fetching illustrations support the text. Emma's fans will be pleased.-Terry Ann Lawler, Phoenix Public Library, AZ

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2010
Grades 2-4 The sixth in Warners series finds third-grader Emma focused on a problem at home. She is disappointed to find out that her mother, divorced for two years, needs adult company and has been dating someone for months. Emma tries clumsily to make the relationship go away, and Warner realistically depicts a childs confusing feelings in this situation as well as a single mothers anger over bad behavior. Harpers charming illustrationsvaried in size but almost always featuring Emmakeep the story light as the adults figure out how to handle things. As Emma says, Thats how grown-ups put it, like theres a handle on top of every problem.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)