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msnicolelee 's review for:
The First Rule of Punk
by Celia C. Pérez
A charming and fun story about a creative preteen and her journey of self-discovery through music, art, and some punk DIY sensibility. Twelve-year-old María Luisa O’Neill-Morales, otherwise known as Malú, loves punk-rock music, hanging out at her father’s indie record store, and making zines. She moves from Florida to Chicago though due to her Mexican-American professor mother's appointment at a university there, throwing her happy life into a tailspin. Malú has a hard time adjusting to life in Chicago at first, and especially misses her father who she identifies with much more than her mother. (The two are divorced but very friendly and supportive as parents.) She refers to her as the "SuperMexican" and her mother is constantly disapproving of her fashion choices.
Malú is called a "coconut" at her new primarily Latino school, and makes a quick enemy of confident classmate Selena. Luckily, she manages to meet some other misfits and convinces them to start a punk band with her for the school Fall Fiesta, which this year will celebrate the school's namesake artist José Guadalupe Posada. When they are shut out of the show for not being "traditional" enough Malú plots an Alterna-Fiesta. Eventually, she realizes she can connect with both her Mexican heritage while still being a punk at heart, thanks to her new found friends and various awesome adults who help her find her way. Sprinkled throughout the book are pages of Malú’s zines and artwork which middle-grade readers are sure to appreciate and maybe even be inspired by. Full of positive messages, humor, and a big dose of coolness this book is highly recommended!
Malú is called a "coconut" at her new primarily Latino school, and makes a quick enemy of confident classmate Selena. Luckily, she manages to meet some other misfits and convinces them to start a punk band with her for the school Fall Fiesta, which this year will celebrate the school's namesake artist José Guadalupe Posada. When they are shut out of the show for not being "traditional" enough Malú plots an Alterna-Fiesta. Eventually, she realizes she can connect with both her Mexican heritage while still being a punk at heart, thanks to her new found friends and various awesome adults who help her find her way. Sprinkled throughout the book are pages of Malú’s zines and artwork which middle-grade readers are sure to appreciate and maybe even be inspired by. Full of positive messages, humor, and a big dose of coolness this book is highly recommended!