Body Swap

October 15, 2018
Grades 6-9 Fifteen-year-old Hallie is absolutely dying to get a boyfriend?and hurrying toward the mall to meet her crush, intent on her phone instead of the parking lot, she is struck and almost killed by the out-of-control vehicle she doesn't see coming. The car's elderly driver, Susan, almost has a heart attack at what she's done. Divine intervention saves their lives, under the condition that they use their second chance for the greater good?exposing the faulty automobile manufacturing that caused the accident?and swap bodies until they carry out their mission. Susan, an octogenarian in a black teenager's body, confronts racial profiling for the first time, while Hallie faces ageism and debility that makes her appreciate her sturdy body. A sweet, uplifting story about empathy and intergenerational connection, though it's a mild and moralistic read for the target teen audience. More likely to charm preadolescent readers than make a splash in YA collections.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)