The Retake

The Retake

Jen Calonita

Delacourte, February, 2021

272 pages

Grades 4-7

Fantasy

Welcome to the most disastrous first day of school ever! Zoe is starting seventh grade without her best friend Laura, who has ditched her to hang out with the cool, yet nasty, "Drama Queens". She has forgotten both her bus pass and her schedule, has a stain on her white pants, and drops her tray while trying to figure out a place to sit at lunch. Just when all seems desperately helpless, a pink app appears on her phone, allowing her a much-needed "do-over". Can Zoe get the friendship back on track if she goes back a bit in time? The first attempt yields even worse results and makes her phone really hot. Zoe tries again, this time going back even further. The same even worse results and a hotter phone. Will she be able to fix this mess before her phone implodes? Finally, Zoe goes back far enough and, with a little dishonesty, secures Laura's exclusive friendship, only it is not all it's cracked up to be. And is Laura really the friend that Zoe needs right now?

Calonita, of Fairy Tale Reform School fame, offers a new stand-alone title that will speak to all middle school girls. At this age friendships are the most important relationships in a young person's life. Calonita explores the agony and confusion experienced by the friend who is left behind as one of the pair matures and grows in a different direction. The thought of a "do-over" will certainly appeal to the target audience, who will sympathize with Zoe and groan as her day goes from bad to worse. This middle-grade "Groundhog Day" is realistically portrayed, even though fantastical elements are at play, and the use of a phone app is both relatable and the stuff of genius. Readers will long for the app on their own phones, yet will hopefully learn, as Zoe does, to be content with their lots and learn to change course. I greatly enjoyed this story and am convinced that the target audience will as well. Even though this was the book I read at bedtime, which usually means I fall asleep after a few sentences, I cruised through, staying up way past usual. The ending was satisfactory and I breathed a sign of relief as Zoe finally lets go of her past and finds a new path. A great choice for reluctant readers, The Retake will be enjoyed and passed around middles schools everywhere.