Solving for M

February 1, 2019
It's a hard year for Mika.Mika, an artist, isn't keen on starting her new fifth-grade math class. However, her quirky new math teacher, Mr. Vann, assigns each student to keep a math journal in which Mika can draw her assignments. (Most chapters are introduced by Mr. Vann's latest math assignment, highlighted by illustrations that depict Mika's math journal entries.) While Mika is getting used to being in a class separate from her fourth-grade best friend, her single mother discovers a spot that turns out to be a melanoma. As Mika engages more with her math journal, she begins to use the math to process her mother's illness, which is more serious than initially expected. She also makes two new friends, whom she leans on for support. The book starts slowly, concentrating on math and school and failing to build the relationship between Mika and her mother such that readers get a sense of contrast with the time prior to her mother's illness. It isn't until the third act that the author spends more time and attention to fully fleshing out other characters in their lives, such as her grandmother and her mother's best friend, her mom's main support system through the chemotherapy. Mika and her family present white, but her friends and classmates are diverse, and her mom's best friend is a woman of color.A sensitive book that starts so slowly its readers may put it down before the real story begins. (Fiction. 8-12)

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April 1, 2019
Debut author Swender cleverly tells the story of shy artist Mika Barnes by interspersing entries of an illustrated math journal throughout her first-person narrative. Mika lives with her mother in New York’s Hudson Valley and rarely sees her father and his new wife, who live in Florida. Mika’s first year as a fifth grader at Highbridge Middle School promises to be challenging: she’s in a different pod than her best friend, and her math teacher, Mr. Vann, teaches in a wholly unconventional way—using a math journal to “embark on reflective discussions of relevant math issues.” When she finds out that her mom has melanoma, it’s Mr. Vann and his journal prompts, along with two new unlikely friends at school, that help her cope. Mika’s journal entries prove both amusing and touching as she expresses her uncertainty and fear through numbers and drawings, and Swender nicely captures the mind-set of a child struggling to understand a parent’s illness. Though Mika seems more like a bystander watching things unfold than a protagonist evolving over time, the unusual format and the author’s realistic portrayal of a girl navigating social and familial issues make this a worthy read. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Jennifer Weltz, Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency.

April 1, 2019

Gr 4-7-Math has applications and relevance to real life, as this book shows through the experiences of the artistic-minded and sensitive fifth-grader Mika, who fills the math journal she's been assigned by her kooky math teacher with illustrations relating to her feelings around her divorced mother's ongoing skin cancer treatment. These illustrations alternate with chapters written in Mika's vulnerable and sincere first-person voice. Most scenes occur either in math class or at home, each centered around basic pre-algebraic concepts: order of operations, estimation, variables, sets, etc. Mika's growth is slow and steady as she makes new friends, acclimates to a new normal, and learns to tell her mother she still needs her. Mika, her family, and all characters but one are white, living in upper-middle class upstate New York. VERDICT What some may see as a transparent attempt to foist math review on unsuspecting middle grade readers, others will enjoy as a sad yet sweet character-driven novel not unlike those of Lisa Graff or Julie Sternberg, with a focus on having a parent with cancer.-Rhona Campbell, Georgetown Day School, Washington, DC

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2019
Grades 3-6 An artistic girl uses her math journal to come to terms with her mother's illness in this character-driven middle-grade novel. Mika isn't so sure about middle school. She is in a different pod than her former best friend, and her eccentric math teacher makes his students keep journals, where they draw creative solutions to show their thought processes instead of simply answering problems. When Mika's mom is diagnosed with melanoma, math class becomes Mika's refuge. She finds new best friends in her classmates (science-loving Dee Dee and kind Chelsea) and uses her math journal to work through her anxieties about her mom's illness, medications, and uncertain recovery. Swender fills Mika's journey with quiet hope and gradual adjustments. Mika's math-journal entries, featuring playful, doodle-like figures and words in childlike handwriting, liven up the story and provide insight into Mika's internal life. There are also plenty of supportive women characters who help Mika carry on, such as her grandmother, her dad's new wife, and her mom's best friend. A quiet but creative story about accepting change and uncertainty.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)