Newbery Roundup #1: Freestyle, Swim Team, and Maizy Chen’s Last Chance

Three novels for middle-grades that may be under consideration for this year’s top prize

Freestyle by Gale Galligan. Graphix; (Scholastic), 2022, 322 pages. (Ages 10-14)

This is the last year that Eight Bitz, a Bronx middle-school dance crew, will be together, and they need to make it count. Crew captain Tess is determined that they will at least place in the spring competition and go out with a bang. As the school year progresses, however, crew members are more irritated than inspired by Tess’s martinet style. Especially Cory, whose lackluster school performance lead his parents to hire a tutor. The tutor is Sunna, as standoffish as she is crazy smart.

Sunna has her own issues, such as parents who continually compare her to her brilliant older brother Ahmed. But she also has a secret talent, handed down from Ahmed: yo-yo throwing. This creates a point of connection between her and Cory, even as their budding friendship and parental pressure draw him further away from Eight Bitz. The lively visual style draws readers into a story of finding balance in the confusing middle-grade years. Both Cory and Tess learn how their passions can alienate others, while Sunna begins to shape her own identity. One character goes by plural pronouns (they, them), but a reader has to be pretty alert to catch it.

Overall Rating: 4 (out of 5)

What are its Newbery chances? Graphic novels are definitely on the upswing, and this one strikes some nice multicultural notes without getting preachy. I don’t find it outstanding enough to merit a Newbery nod, but the committee might think differently.

Also at Redeemed Reader: Power Forward features another Muslim young person like Sunna, whose athletic ambitions don’t match his parents’ scholastic goals.

Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas. Harper Alley (Harper Collins), 2022, 245 pages. (Ages 10-14)

Bree, an excellent student who loves science and math, is looking forward to her first day at Enith Brigitha Middle School. She and her dad have just moved from Brooklyn to Florida, and Dad is encouraging her to put school first and friends second. But friends should be part of the deal, right? First day is tougher than Bree expects, and to cap her loneliness and confusion, every single one of the electives she prefers are full. The only one left is Swimming 101–and Bree is terrified of water! Skipping school is not a long-term solution. Fortunately, though, as it happens her neighbor Miss Etta is a former swim champion. After overcoming her initial fears and failures, Bree gains enough competence to join the swim team. But the snooty kids from Holyoke Prep won’t let her forget how clumsy she was in the opening tryouts, and morale on the team is sinking to the bottom of the pool.

Racism enters the picture when Bree wonders why so few black people are champion swimmers. One reason is that when Miss Etta was young, “her kind” and Bree’s were largely prohibited from swimming with whites. Bad feelings persist to this day, even among members of Miss Etta’s former swim team. Digging into the history gives Bree an extra boost of determination to be all she can be in the water, plus an instrument of reconciliation among fellow students as well as members of her grandparents’ generation. The story and art style effectively present character, especially when depicting Bree’s hidden fears and uncertainties. It’s also gratifying to see racism taking a back seat in her generation. Bree’s mother is never mentioned, a trend I see more and more in books with single-parent protagonists.

Overall Rating: 4

What are its Newbery chances? Swim Team has appeared on many “best of” lists, including the long list for the National Book Award. Like Freestyle, it includes a multicultural cast or characters, and bringing in the older generation to provide perspective is welcome. But we’ve noticed that NBA titles seldom end up on Newbery lists, but maybe that’s just a superstition. Coretta Scott King honors are very likely, though.

Also at Redeemed Reader: Ride On is another graphic novel dealing with overcoming fear and besting a snooty private school.

Maizy Chen’s Last Chance by Lisa Yee. Random House, 2022, 269 pages. (Ages 10-14)

Maizy Chen has only seen her grandparents once, when they visited the set of the TV station where her mom stages a cooking show. Fake food and hot lights created such a disturbing experience for Oma and Opa that they soon headed back to their Chinese restaurant in Last Chance, Minnesota. But now comes word that Opa is very sick. The “last of the last-chance Chens” pack up and move from L.A. for the summer, so Mom can help with the restaurant and Maizy can . . . do what? She’s stuck in the middle of nowhere!

Opa is indeed sick; in fact, it could be his last illness. But Maizy brightens his eye and strengthens his voice as he begins to tell stories about her great-grandfather who immigrated from China in the mid-19^th century. Life wasn’t easy for “Chinamen” at the time, but Lucky Chen persevered through prejudice and low-paying jobs, eventually becoming a master chef. How he ended up in Last Chance is the unfolding tale that gives Maizy a growing appreciation for her own heritage. A good thing, too, as traces of bigotry and broken friendships still remain. She’s just an 11-year-old girl but maybe she, with the help of local friends her own age, can contribute to justice and reconciliation.

In addition to racial healing, the story stresses forgiveness, correcting misunderstandings, and the value of family heritage—all worthy themes. The grandparents’ loving relationship is sweet and touching and something their daughter apparently never pursued (Maizy was conceived with an anonymous sperm doner, a fact that doesn’t seem to trouble her much). Also, a secondary character whom Maizy suspects of courting her Mom turns out to be married already—to another man.

Overall rating: 3.5

What are its Newbery chances? The curse of the NBA may strike again (Maizy Chen was a finalist in the youth category), but I’d still say 50/50. Lisa Yee has written several well-received titles and never received Newbery recognition, so it may be her turn. The novel also checks some important diversity boxes.

Also at Redeemed Reader: Front Desk features more recent Chinese immigrants and the challenges they face in America.

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