The Charming Life of Izzy Malone

Gr 4–6—Izzy feels like a sore thumb in a room full of pinkies. She's a spirited girl who wants to be a part of the competitive after-school rowing team, the Dandelion Paddlers, but is best known as "Toad Girl" by her classmates. She describes herself as the "kid in class that everyone secretly (and not-so-secretly) thinks is weird." She lives with her older sister (a musical prodigy who gets more than her fair share of attention), her mom (who is running for mayor), her father (who is the town's police chief), her grandma, and her great-aunt. Her parents enroll her in Mrs. Whippie's Earn Your Charm School, where she learns about manners while being prompted to do her best and is rewarded with charms for a bracelet. This contemporary realistic novel is told in the first person, and readers will root for Izzy.