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A review by angiew23
Hetty and the Battle of the Books by Anna James
5.0
This early chapter book is perfect for all book-loving middle grade readers. Broken into about 10 chapters and covers only 69 pages, a great length for readers who are just getting ready for chapter books and aren't quite ready for long and complex books. Chapters include some black and white illustrations which break up longer pieces of text and help with comprehension, two things that will make this book less intimidating and easier to read for this age group. Added to that, the font is fairly large and is really accessible, it even has the true a and opentail g (regular printed letters lol) making it even easier to read.
Enough of that teacher-y reading stuff! Hetty and the Battle of the Books is about a girl and her three (former) friends who work together to try to save their school library (and librarian) which is in danger because of budget cuts. Despite having recently gone separate ways, the group of four bffs, known as the ladybirds, realize that working for a common goal like this one is a great way to get a friendship back on track. The problem in the story is realistic and something that young readers will quickly engage with. This chapter book demonstrates the importance and power of libraries and access to information, and reminds readers that they have a voice and can make change, even at a young age. The main characters are in year 7 (which is about the equivalent to grade 6), which makes them seem older and cooler, and reminds younger readers that even older kids have friendship trouble sometimes and that misunderstandings are common and both can be fixed.
I would highly recommend this book to parents and teachers of book-loving early middle grade readers in the age 6-10 range who are excited to read chapter books! I could definitely see this book fitting well in my grade 3 classroom library. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this lovely book!
Enough of that teacher-y reading stuff! Hetty and the Battle of the Books is about a girl and her three (former) friends who work together to try to save their school library (and librarian) which is in danger because of budget cuts. Despite having recently gone separate ways, the group of four bffs, known as the ladybirds, realize that working for a common goal like this one is a great way to get a friendship back on track. The problem in the story is realistic and something that young readers will quickly engage with. This chapter book demonstrates the importance and power of libraries and access to information, and reminds readers that they have a voice and can make change, even at a young age. The main characters are in year 7 (which is about the equivalent to grade 6), which makes them seem older and cooler, and reminds younger readers that even older kids have friendship trouble sometimes and that misunderstandings are common and both can be fixed.
I would highly recommend this book to parents and teachers of book-loving early middle grade readers in the age 6-10 range who are excited to read chapter books! I could definitely see this book fitting well in my grade 3 classroom library. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this lovely book!