This was a nice little story about two best friends who like to craft things. This was pretty good for middle grade, if tooth achingly sweet. The illustrations were gorgeous. I liked that each person had their own interests and they worked together to share their hobbies. I was expecting a lot more detail than what was there but I did like that the friendship bracelet instructions were included in the back. The drama was easily resolved and there were good rational solutions suggested to solve it - like TALKING to ONE ANOTHER to TELL EACH OTHER HOW YOU FEEL. God knows it's been awhile since I've read something so logical. I'll probably pick up the rest of the series at some point. They're short and easy to read. 3 stars for me. 4 for target audience. ( )

Mentioned in a blog post at https://booksbeyondbinaries.blog/2020/07/20/chapter-books-whats-good/ (July 20th release)

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Recommended Ages: Gr. 1-3

Plot Summary: Emily and Maddie are so close they call themselves Mad-ily and they can't stand to be apart for an entire weekend. But things get shaky when Bella moves to town and Maddie and Bella seem to connect immediately. What does that mean for Emily? Is it a coincidence that Emily lost the friendship bracelet Maddie made for her?

Setting: probably suburban because there's a big shed in the backyard and it seems unusual for there to be one

Characters:
Emily - best friends with Maddie, plays soccer
Maddie - best friends with Emily, nice, asks questions
Bella - new girl, dad is chef at Mexican restaurant
Sam - quiet, loves to draw in his journal
Ms. Gibbons - teacher

Recurring Themes: friendship, crafts, coding, new student, welcoming, teamwork, building

Controversial Issues: none

Personal Thoughts: Well written, engaging, good amount of character development. These kids can independently do quite a bit in terms of building and designing, but otherwise authentic.

Genre: realistic fiction

Pacing: fast, large font, at least 1 picture per double spread
Characters: developed well enough for a quick read, seem authentic
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