Lola and the Troll

K-Gr 3–Lola is a girl who adores everything about school. Getting to school, however, is decidedly unenjoyable. Lola’s walk is plagued by Tom the Troll. Tom torments the neighborhood children, holding up insulting signs and laughing as they hurry past. Despite trying her best to be brave, Lola takes Tom’s taunts to heart. When he calls her feet smelly, she fills her shoes with cornstarch. When he makes fun of her hair, she ties it up tight. Lola becomes less and less herself until a kind bookstore owner intervenes, giving Lola the confidence to stand up to the troll. It turns out the troll is just the new kid on the block, seeking attention from the other children. A little lecture from Lola and the offer of friendship easily wraps everything up, making readers wonder what was so scary about the troll in the first place. The illustrations are adorable, but are discordant with and even struggle to depict the text. Tom may terrify Lola but his appearance is silly; and while much is made of Lola’s wild curls, her hair appears straight on the pages.