A review by acdhamija
Clementine by Sara Pennypacker

5.0

Clementine’s week keeps getting worse. No one seems to understand that Clementine is the only trying to help when she cuts off her friend Margaret’s hair and draws it back on with a permanent marker, or when she lays on the floor in the principal’s office to help look for ceiling snakes, or when she cuts off her own hair so Margaret does not have to be the only one with no hair. Clementine tries (and fails) to be on her best behavior so her parents will not get rid of her, but in the end she realizes that even though she will never be “the easy one,” no one would ever want to change her. Clementine’s distinctive voice and exuberant personality are the driving force of this quirky tale. Full of the irrepressible energy and curiosity of girlhood, Frazee’s ink drawings bring Clementine’s humorous antics to life, if readers can manage to tear themselves away from the story to look at them. Adults will love this story and its spunky heroine as much as their children. Highly recommended. Ages 7-10.