Extraordinary

May 11, 2015
Franklin debuts with a gentle story about two 10-year-old best friends divided by illness. Brave and adventurous Anna was always trying to persuade Pansy to take up ice-skating and donate her hair to Locks for Love. Then they had a falling-out when Pansy backed out of joining Anna at a sleep-away camp; while she was there, Anna contracted meningitis and suffered severe brain damage. With Anna scheduled for surgery that she believes will "cure" her, Pansy attempts to use the months before the surgery to turn herself into the "extraordinary" best friend she knows Anna deserves. Pansy chops off her hair, takes up rollerblading, reads voraciously to win a reading contest, and joins the Girl Scouts; these accomplishments bring her personal satisfaction and give her the strength to stand up to a school bully, but her single-mindedness also hurts her. Most readers will understand long before Pansy does that she is setting herself up for disappointment, but they will also recognize that Pansy's dedication to her friend is plenty extraordinary in itself. Ages 8â12. Agent: Mandy Hubbard, D4EO Literary Agency.

August 1, 2015

Gr 4-6-Pansy's best friend, Anna, had an accident that left her brain damaged. Although the doctors say that the damage is permanent, Pansy believes that an upcoming surgery will bring back her best friend. In the meantime, Pansy plans to become a new and better person for Anna. She wants to learn to roller-skate, win the reading competition, and go camping-all the things she was reluctant to do before Anna's accident. This work is paced as a countdown to Anna's surgery, and as Pansy eagerly prepares and awaits that day, she also finds herself caught between wanting things to go back to the way they were and making new friends. Although her novel is inherently sad, Franklin keeps the mood from becoming too depressing by focusing on Pansy's attempts to be "extraordinary." She is relatable and, at times, funny. Readers have the opportunity to reflect on what it means to be special and the importance of friendships, both old and new. Though Pansy and Anna are in fifth grade, the themes are universal, and this could easily appeal to young teens as well as the middle grade set. VERDICT A fine addition to upper elementary and middle school collections where weighty realistic fiction is in demand.-Jessica Ko, Los Angeles Public Library

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2015
Grades 4-7 In this effective debut, an elementary-school student tries to cope with the absence of her longtime best friend. Beginning at the start of fifth grade, the book tells of Pansy Smith's efforts to improve herself while Anna, who contracted meningitis the previous spring break, makes small steps of recovery elsewhere. For most of the book, Pansy looks hopefully toward the December date of Anna's scheduled brain surgery, which Pansy believes will bring Anna back to normal and back to their school. Franklin sensitively shows how Pansy, the book's narrator, keeps herself from hearing what the adults around her are sayingthat Anna is permanently brain-damaged. Pansy also copes with the guilt she carries because of a fight she and Anna had before Anna's illness. There are plenty of lighter moments in the narrative, as when Pansy pals around with Anna's twin brother, tries to learn to ice skate, and makes some new friends, but the ending, in which Pansy accepts the reality of Anna's situation, is suitably affecting.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)