Your Move, J. P.!

May 1, 1990
J.P. Tate, age 12, is in love for the first time. But not with just anybody: he's in love with the exquisitely beautiful Angela Patricia Galsworthy, who has just moved to America from London. J.P. is so infatuated that he will go to any lengths to impress Angela: he tells her, in fact, that he has a very rare, fatal disease called triple framosis. The boy's seemingly inconsequential lie takes on major proportions when he learns that Angela's father is a specialist in genetic disorders and is interested in J.P.'s case. When he suddenly realizes that Angela is just another girl, it is too late to untangle himself gracefully from his web of lies. In both Switcharound and The One Hundredth Thing About Caroline , J.P.'s antics are funny and refreshing. But while certain incidents in Lowry's latest tale of J.P. are highly entertaining, this story lacks some of the spark and originality of her earlier works. Ages 8-12.

May 1, 1990
Gr 4-7- -The dilemma confronting J. P. Tate is of immense import: how to win the affection of his seventh - grade classmate, Angela Galsworthy, newly arrived from London. J. P.'s machinations as he grapples with the ever-growing problems created by his infatuation form the basic outline of the plot. The events and attitudes expressed would seem more appropriate for the older J. P. who appeared in the two previous offerings about the Tate family, The 100th Thing About Caroline (1983) and Switcharound (1985, both Houghton). Here, he is only 12, but he seems older than in those two books. However, the amusing banter between his 10-year-old sister, Caroline, and J. P.; the believable characters; and the realistic school setting provide pleasant, light reading for Lowry fans. Readers will empathize with J. P.'s discomfort as he is trapped by small white lies that become complicated deceptions. They will cheer him as he retains his chess champion status against tremendous odds. They will nod with satisfaction as he realizes that Angela, her pearly teeth and spun-gold hair notwithstanding, doesn't hold a candle to his old friend Hope, who comes through for him in a pinch. Even though J. P. has forsaken his ingenious electrical creations and his computer wizardry for the role of lovesick swain, his wry sense of humor, cleverness, and creativity are enough in evidence to satisfy readers of this series. -Martha Rosen, Edgewood School, Scarsdale, NY