Still Sal

Starred review from August 1, 2024
Sal Miller's sense of self is shaken just before the start of first grade. The protagonist ofOh, Sal (2022) confronts new challenges. For one thing, Sal's younger sister, Poppy, now 2, is sharing what used to beSal's bedroom with her. And Sal's high expectations for the first day of school are disappointed when her best friend and next-door neighbor, Griffen, is assigned to a different classroom. Griffen's teacher, the charmingly named Ms. Flowers, seems pretty perfect. By contrast, in less bubbly Ms. McCormick's class, Sal's nametag mistakenly reads "Sally," and Ms. McCormick's tour of the school is fairly dull. Sal--bright and full of opinions and interest in the world around her--wears her feelings and hopes close to the surface. Fairly sophisticated language and observations stretch the target audience to include third and fourth graders for whom first grade may be a distant memory (or even, for some, never experienced in person). Henkes' graceful, easy prose, sharp insights, and impressive ability to convey the way children think shine here. He invites readers to empathize with Sal, feeling her disappointment and annoyance with a world that doesn't always understand her as well as the satisfaction with small victories that bring her back to herself: getting used to a major haircut and learning to connect with Ms. McCormick. Spot art from Henkes is scattered throughout. Characters' races and ethnicities aren't mentioned; previous titles cued characters as white. A delightful, understated triumph.(Fiction. 6-10)

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from September 1, 2024
Grades 2-5 *Starred Review* Sal expects her first day of first grade to be outstanding, but she's disappointed. Instead of joining her best friend, Griff, in classroom 1A with young, lively Ms. Flowers, she's in 1B with Ms. McCormick, a kind, older teacher. Tension mounts when Griff befriends two boys and spends less time with Sal. Nothing seems to go her way. When Brooke, the woman cutting Sal's hair, hears that Sal's in Ms. McCormick's class, she fondly recalls her happy year as a first-grader with Ms. McCormick. Given her love for Ms. Flowers, Sal is surprised to hear such glowing praise of her teacher. Struggling with complex emotions, she doesn't feel like herself; two unexpected encounters help her move forward. After all, as Papa tells her, "You're still Sal." The Year of Billy Miller (2013), a Newbery Honor Book, was the first volume in Henkes' Miller Family Story series. This is the second book, featuring Sal, Billy's sister. Throughout the narrative, spot illustrations feature items mentioned rather than people, letting kids imagine the characters on their own. Sometimes poignant, sometimes amusing, the story moves along steadily. Sal's observations and the thoughts flitting through her mind bring her world to life. An engaging, perceptive early chapter book.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

November 1, 2024
Sal Miller is six. Her life is changing so much that she tells Papa, "I'm not Sal anymore," after her two-year-old sister, Poppy, moves into her bedroom. Sal "was a person who had a room of her own, and I -- whoever I am -- don't." When she gets a new haircut, she wonders, "If she looked different, would she feel different? Was she still Sal?" The start of first grade has been Sal's big excitement of the summer, but when she and best friend Griffen are placed in different classes and he starts to make other friends, where does that leave Sal? "She'd thought Griff was a true friend, and now, she realized he was, in fact, a true enemy." In this fourth installment of the series (most recently Oh, Sal, rev. 9/22), Henkes again navigates the vicissitudes of his young protagonist's life with warmth, humor, and utmost respect. Though this is primarily Sal's story, with her father there to hug, guide, and reassure her, all characters, including Mama, Poppy, and older brother Billy, are well drawn, with their own parts to play in this narrative about a loving family where true affection is palpable in every scene. With gentle support from parents and teachers, Sal comes to understand that her life might change, but she is still Sal. Dean Schneider

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2024
Sal Miller is six. Her life is changing so much that she tells Papa, "I'm not Sal anymore," after her two-year-old sister, Poppy, moves into her bedroom. Sal "was a person who had a room of her own, and I -- whoever I am -- don't." When she gets a new haircut, she wonders, "If she looked different, would she feel different? Was she still Sal?" The start of first grade has been Sal's big excitement of the summer, but when she and best friend Griffen are placed in different classes and he starts to make other friends, where does that leave Sal? "She'd thought Griff was a true friend, and now, she realized he was, in fact, a true enemy." In this fourth installment of the series (most recently Oh, Sal, rev. 9/22), Henkes again navigates the vicissitudes of his young protagonist's life with warmth, humor, and utmost respect. Though this is primarily Sal's story, with her father there to hug, guide, and reassure her, all characters, including Mama, Poppy, and older brother Billy, are well drawn, with their own parts to play in this narrative about a loving family where true affection is palpable in every scene. With gentle support from parents and teachers, Sal comes to understand that her life might change, but she is still Sal.

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)