A review by mldavisreads
Shaking Up the House by Yamile Saied Méndez

funny informative

3.5

Middle grade realistic fiction. This story takes us inside the White House, where a Latinx family is ending their term, and a Black family is moving in.  The Lopez daughters moved in so young that they can't remember life without secret service agents following their every move.  The incoming Williams daughters, who are twins, are a bit nervous about living up to the picture-perfect image that the two Lopez daughters portrayed.  A renovation glitch means that the Williams family is moving in a bit earlier than usual, weeks before the Inauguration.  Ingrid and Winnie discover a tradition of pranks towards the incoming first family and get to work.  Their first prank goes a bit wrong, and they know that Zora and Skylar will be retaliating.  Can the girls share the house for weeks without hurting each other or getting in the tabloids?

I loved that this story incorporated real facts about the White House and presidential history in it.  I had a little bit of trouble keeping the four girls straight and thought the public nature of the pranks made them more mean than funny.  I definitely liked the idea that a Hispanic man was the outgoing president and a Black woman was the incoming president.  It will be great for kids to see that representation.  

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read a digital advanced copy of this book.