The author crosses that line when Amelia insists that even with a nice teacher, nothing can make math good. Her thoughts and experiences are realistic and amusing, but there is a fine line between identifying with the transient emotions of adolescents and reinforcing stereotypes that could have life long consequences. Amelia fans will grab this, but the book stands well alone thanks to its engaging protagonist and a sympathetic portrayal of new-school challenges that will strike a familiar chord among children.Īmelia is worried about all the middle school traumas that have worried young adolescents since the beginning of public school: intimidating eighth graders, buildings that are more like huge mazes destined to swallow children, locks and lockers and perhaps most important of all-food becoming the least important part of lunch. Like other books in the ongoing series, this one features a handwritten format colorful, cartoonlike illustrations and charming doodles with descriptive asides to creatively portray Amelia's experiences, emotions, and often-witty musings on school life and the people around her. Both insightful and entertaining, Amelia's first-person narrative rings true as she navigates unfamiliar terrain and finds unexpected rewards, such as discovering a love of science. Nothing Amelia does helps, until she tries looking at things differently and discovers value in communication and honesty. Worse, though, is her English teacher, Mr.

21))įinally entering middle school, Amelia looks forward to having a locker and changing classes, but dreads attending the same school as her eighth-grade sister, Cleo. She describes her struggles in her new school with her teacher and sister. Amelia is in sixth grade and just started middle school. This book is written from Amelia’s point of view.

Here I am, officially a 6th grader, even though school doesn’t begin until tomorrow. 'It's funny that art, the class that's considered the least serious and important - after all, it's an elective, so you don't have to take it, and there's no homework - is teaching me the most stuff, things I can use in the rest of my life, not just in art class.'

The doodled-in-a-composition-book style will appeal to comics fans and reluctant readers. This is one of those funny/sad books that will bring middle school and all its pressures ('Food is the least important part of lunch now') rushing back. Lambaste, bullies Amelia because of a grudge he holds against her older sister, Amelia faces a real coming-of-age challenge.

This is the only Amelia book I've read, but it's a winner! Amelia has finally reached middle school, only to find it a jungle of stuck lockers, stuck-up 8th graders, untrustworthy drinking fountains, and a LOT more homework than elementary school ('no more Valentine's Day parties no more tetherball no more being read to by the teacher').

Amelia's Notebook by Marissa Moss