Penny Draws a Best Friend
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
How come Violet is suddenly not into drawing? Who etched the words ‘I Am Bug Man’ inside my desk? Why is Mom suddenly acting like she has a secret?
Nobody said starting the last year of primary school would be easy, and Penny Lowry’s anxiety means a million questions are always spinning through her thoughts. Luckily she’s got a lot to look forward to, like her favourite after-school activity, Art Club, and seeing her best friend Violet again after spending the whole summer apart.
The thing is, Violet has been acting weird ever since she got back. She never wants to hang out anymore, she says Art Club is for babies, and she spends all her time with Riley, the meanest girl in school. Did Penny do something wrong? And if she did, can she undo it?
In this sweet, tender and funny introduction to a lovable kid figuring out how to manage her anxiety, the author of the #1 bestselling Pretty Little Liars series gets to the heart of how to let go of the friends who aren’t right for you—and how to make room for the ones who are.
Sara Shepard is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Pretty Little Liars series, The Lying Game series, The Heiresses, The Elizas, The Perfectionists series, and Reputation.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
As outlined in an author's note, Shepard (the Pretty Little Liars series) draws from her own childhood experience with anxiety for this diary-style illustrated novel. Rising fifth grader Penny is looking forward to her best friend Violet's return from summer gymnastics camp. But the start of school promptly reveals that Violet has moved on: she's no longer into Art Club—an activity the girls previously shared—and camp has bonded her with popular mean girl Riley. But Mrs. Hines, the "feelings teacher" Penny speaks with regularly about her worries, proves a catalyst for personal change, giving Penny a journal to work through things. As Penny encounters, and slowly befriends, other students who talk to Mrs. Hines, she directs her diary entries to her "loyal and nice" dog, Cosmo, who shares many of Penny's fears ("Storms. Fireworks. Balloons. Clowns"). In chatty, quick-moving installments, Penny tells entertaining anecdotes and details her brother's recurring croup, her concerns about social scenarios, and a secret her parents seem to be keeping. Shepard's light touch and sketchbook-style b&w doodles make for an engaging read that candidly portrays the effect of destabilizing changes on one child experiencing anxiety. Character portrayals reflect the white of the page. Ages 8–12.
