This first entry in the new Franklin School Friends trilogy is that rare book that can appeal to both reluctant and voracious readers.
Voracious readers will understand Kelsey in a heartbeat: she is one of the best readers in the third grade, except perhaps for Simon Ellis, and when Franklin School's principal announces a reading competition, she is determined to read more than anybody in the school. Given her mom's annoying habit of forcing her to attend family activities, this turns out to be harder than she thought, and Simon soon takes the lead. Kelsey is convinced he's cheating and enlists her friends to help her prove it.
Reluctant readers will be more attracted to another character: Cody. He hates reading, much to Kelsey's dismay, because she's hoping she and Simon's page counts combined will lift their class into the lead. Kelsey is torn between trying to help him see the glory of reading, and trying to win. Between that and a surprising revelation about Simon, she soon realizes that there is more than one way to love reading--and that not everyone has to.
Mills's writing is quick and readable without being simple, and the story is pleasingly complex. This combination makes the book a good fit for readers of varying reading levels, and the story will appeal to all of them as well. Readers will snap it up and look forward to the next two books in the series, about Kelsey's partners in crime: Annika Riz, Math Whiz, and Izzy Barr, Running Star. --Stephanie Anderson, head of readers' advisory at Darien Library and blogger