March 1, 2015
Gr 5-7-Marigold, Zinnie, and Lily Silver live in Los Angeles with their screenwriter dad and editor mom. When both parents get out-of-town jobs, the girls are unwillingly shipped to the coastal town of Pruet, MA, to stay with their Aunt Sunny. Twelve-year-old Marigold is livid. She has just gotten an agent for her budding acting career plus an opportunity to audition for her favorite book-turned-movie, Nite Sprites. Spunky Aunt Sunny merrily greets the trio with the distressing news that there is no cell phone reception, no TV, and a slow internet connection. But the house is inviting, Aunt Sunny cooks delicious pancakes, and the girls are allowed to go to the beach by themselves. The sisters excitedly learn that Philip Rathbone, the producer of Nite Sprites, has a Pruet summer home. A community talent show seems like just the thing to catch his eye, so Zinnie goes about writing an original play that will spotlight Marigold's acting ability. The producer turns up to judge the show, along with catty teenage megastar Amanda Mills, forcing Marigold to make a crucial choice. Should she stay loyal to the family and town she has learned to love or turn her back in order to impress the Hollywood glitterati? The cozy, connected characters and activities of Pruet, complete with clambakes, amateur talent shows, and first kisses, are the perfect antidote for a girl caught up in the empty allures of technology and stardom. Zinnie also makes self-discoveries-she may not have the traditional beauty and acting talent of Marigold, but she is creative and resilient. The real-life dynamics between the sisters is humorous and touching. VERDICT This heartwarming story is hard to put down.-Diane McCabe, John Muir Elementary, Santa Monica, CA
Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
March 15, 2015
When job opportunities prevent their parents from staying in Los Angeles for the summer, Zinnia, Marigold, and Lily are sent, unhappily, across the country to great-aunt Sunny's. Twelve-year-old Marigold aspires to a career in acting: she already has a bit television role and an agent. Eleven-year-old "Zinnie," the middle sister, lives in Marigold's shadow, wanting to be just like her. Lily, at 5, is cared for by a nanny. The culture shock of small coastal Pruet, Massachusetts-no television, no cellphone coverage, sharing one bedroom-lessens as the girls settle into its charm and ease, making friends, going to clambakes and dances, and even putting on a talent show. Beginning with its cover, the novel has an old-fashioned sweetness-a sweetness that avoids cloying by the quality of Howland's writing and her character development, especially of Zinnie. For although Zinnie's and Marigold's voices alternate, this is more the middle sister's story. Marigold grows, learning the shallowness of her favorite actress and the importance of family, but Zinnie is the one who steps out of the shadow of her sister, takes a risk, and discovers her own dream to follow. An old-fashioned story well-told, with engaging characters-a beach read for preteens that is as comfortable as the old tennis shoes worn on the Massachusetts shore. (Fiction. 9-12)
Starred review from April 15, 2015
Grades 4-7 *Starred Review* Sisters Marigold, 12, Zinnia, 11, and Lily, 5, live in L.A., but when their parents must travel for their movie-industry jobs, the girls are sent to stay with great-aunt Sunny on Cape Cod. Zinnia and Lily get with the program, but Marigold, whose acting career is taking off, is not pleased. This has many familiar elements of sibling stories: Marigold is the shallow, pretty one; Zinnia, short and round with frizzy hair, is clever and funny; and Lily is the glue that holds them together when things are falling apart. But Howland goes deeper with these characters and gives them more nuance than is often seen in middle-grade fiction. On Cape Cod, the story also goes to expected places, but readers will adore the descriptions of life at the beach, the evolving relationship between Marigold and Zinnia (told in alternating points of view), and the showbiz stardust that follows them even to a tiny beach town. Reminiscent of the Penderwicks series, this also hearkens back to the timeless tales of Elizabeth Enright and Noel Streatfeild. Readers will be drawn in by the charming cover, all sisters and sunshine, and once inside, they will find a book that might well become a favorite.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)