Middle Grade Monday: Dear Student by Elly Swartz

Image: Penguin Random House

Dear Student by Elly Swartz. 296 p. Delacorte Press/ Random House Children's Books, March, 2022. 9780593374139. (Review of arc courtesy of publicist.)

Happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. Middle Grade Monday features Dear Student by Elly Swartz. Autumn is about to start middle school and she is worried. Her best friend, Prisha, moved to California and Autumn's family needed to move into the apartment about her mom's veterinary practice to save money after Autumn's dad decided to join the Peace Corps. He video called her on the first day of school with the advice to seize the day and choose to get involved in one thing at middle school. She's equal parts mad and sad at his desertion. As if these first day worries aren't enough, Autumn tries to help her little sister, Pickle overcome her own. Then, they find a chameleon in the middle of the road. They're about to move it to safety when a boy who is barreling down the road on a bike runs over its tail! What a day this is turning out to be! Luckily, Autumn's mom is a vet, so the three take the poor lizard to her.

Autumn's earnest and thoughtful first-person narration quickly pulls the reader in as she navigates her first day without her best friend. Luckily, she meets Logan, who has moved to Cape Cod from Chicago and Logan seems eager to be friends. Later, she meets the boy on the bike, Cooper, who is also newly transplanted to Cape Cod. It also helps to have Mr. Logan for homeroom and LA. He runs the school newspaper and everyone is wondering who he will pick to write the "Dear Student" advice column. Autumn likes to write, but she's not confident that she could give advice.

Ms. Swartz excels at writing gentle novels featuring tweens coping with a variety of issues including mental health problems. She nails the dynamics and drama of middle school, and also manages to weave in some larger societal issues, such as animals rights in an engaging way. And who doesn't love whoopie pies? Recipe include! Readers will root for Autumn as she finds her voice.

Thanks to Wunderkind PR for the opportunity to read and review Dear Student. My dear students will love to meet Autumn.