11-year-old Merci Suarez has a lot on her plate: navigating
life as a newly minted 6th grader, saving up for a new bike, helping
her Lolo & Papi’s painting business on the weekends, having to babysit her
twin cousins after school (without pay!), preparing for the school soccer team try-outs,
and worst of all, being a Sunshine Buddy to a new student named Michael Clark. Her family is changing and so is her
life. Soon Merci will find out that growing
up is hard. But when things get really
tough, it’s time to change gears and hang on tight!
There was so much to love about this book! Meg Medina touches on so many social issues a
typical 11-year-old would go through. From worrying about fitting in to watching her
classmates develop crushes, Merci’s character is totally relatable. Age 11 is also about the same time a young
person starts noticing change. Merci
sees that her Lolo is becoming forgetful and short tempered and her brother,
Roli, spends all of his time on college applications. Change is happening all around her and there
is nothing she can do about it.
I also love that the author carefully highlights the
differences between Merci and her other schoolmates. For example, the fact that Merci and Roli
attend their private school “on scholarship” or how her whole family lives on a
lot with multiple houses on it. Merci
knows that most kids do not live the way she does, but her differences do not
hinder her from being who she is.
A great read with a lot of heart, Merci Suarez Changes Gears
by Meg Medina would be a great book for ages 9-12 or grades 4-7.
Thank you to NetGalley and Candlewick Press for the
opportunity to read this E-ARC. All
opinions are my own.
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