Carol Weston's (The Diary of Melanie Martin) tale of two siblings offers some twists: the younger sister feels that her parents favor the older sister and, as a budding writer, gregarious Ava breaks the stereotype of reclusive author.
The story unfolds through fifth-grader Ava's journal entries, often signed humorously, such as "Ava, Average" (after she loses the special pen her father the playwright gave her) or "Ava the Ambivalent" (under an entry asking, "Question: Do I even want to be a real writer?"). Wordplay reigns in the family, particularly palindromes. As seventh-grader Pip dominates their parents' attention, Ava tries harder to come up with clever palindromes, and no one notices. When a new girl, Bea, schedules the first boy-girl party on the same night as the sleepover Pip has planned for her 13th birthday, Pip's peers start bailing. Ava fights back with an entry for a writing contest called "Sting of the Queen Bee." Bea, a writer herself, discovers Ava's story, and as they sort things out, Ava discovers Bea is not the villain of her story, but rather a kindred spirit with a similarly shy sibling. The two hatch a plan to help Pip get over her social handicap--and Bea helps Ava with her parents.
Weston discusses challenges for aspiring writers--such as writers block, a dearth of ideas and the fear that can arise with the threat of the subject of your writing discovering what you've written. Weston deals with family dynamics and creative challenges in realistic, emotionally honest ways. --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness