Maybe Maybe Marisol Rainey

Maybe Maybe Marisol Rainey

Erin Entrada Kelly

Greenwillow/HarperCollins, 2021

145 pages

Grades 2-5

Realistic Fiction

Marisol Rainey series #1

Meet Marisol Rainey. She lives with her parents and brother in a house in Louisiana with a wonderful tree-climbing tree named Peppina (Marisol is a girl who names things). It is Marisol's dream to climb Peppina to see the neighborhood from the vantage of a birds, only she is too fearful. She is afraid of many things and does not appreciate that aspect of her personality, wishing she were braver. Marisol's best friend, Jada, is more adventurous and encourages her to climb the tree, but it is no use. Meanwhile, Marisol spends her time watching old silent movies on her brother Oz's computer, playing with Jada and her cat Jelly Beans and having adventures with Mom while Dad is away on his job on an oil rig. After much soul searching and support from Mom and Jada, Marisol finally makes it to the booster branch. Does she have the courage to keep going?

Newbery medal winner, Kelly, turns her talents from writing heartfelt middle grade fiction to penning an equally heartfelt chapter book series. Readers will identify with Marisol's fears as she slowly makes sense of her world and tries new things. Children will cheer as she learns to conquer one of her fears and be comforted by the support she receives from her family and Jada. It is nice to see a kind, if often busy, older brother and with a name like Oz I am an instant fan. Marisol is half Filipino, which is refreshing for a chapter book heroine, and Jada is cued as African American, lending further diversity to the characters. The reading level and linear plot are appropriate for the chapter book crowd and the chapters are short, the font is large, and the margins wide. The black and white illustrations contributed by the author herself, which was a fun surprise, are fun, plentiful and help to advance the plot. The next installment in the series, Surely Surely Marisol Rainey is set for an August 2022 release.