Things Seen from Above

January 1, 2020
A buddy bench brings three disparate kids together. April Boxler is observant and helpful, but she doesn't consider herself to be very social. When she has a falling-out with her only friend on the first day of sixth grade at Marshallville Elementary School, April chooses to be a buddy bench volunteer primarily to avoid her classmates. On her second day as volunteer, April spots Joey Byrd, a fourth grader who lies so still on the woodchip playground that he looks like he might be dead. Joey also walks in circles, lies down in the middle of things, and spends all recess alone. When April expresses her concerns about Joey, both her mother and the school counselor are dismissive. As the weeks proceed, April and her buddy bench co-volunteer, fifth grader Parveena--"Veena" for short--come to realize (with the help of the school janitor, Mr. Ulysses) that Joey is in fact making art on the playground. Pearsall's characters are authentic and well rounded; the story is largely narrated by April in the first person, although the sections titled "JOEYBIRD," which are accompanied by Jin's pencil illustrations, give readers a glimpse into Joey's mind. Almost all the characters, with the exception of Veena, who is from India, seem to be white. An uplifting story of friendship, kindness, and new ways of seeing. (Fiction. 8-12)

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February 1, 2020

Gr 4-6-When sixth-grader April Boxler volunteers to spend time on the school playground's Buddy Bench, she doesn't expect it to change the way she sees everything. In fact, she only agreed to spend recess with the fourth graders to avoid dealing with her own changing friendships. But it's on the bench where April first watches fourth-grader Joey Bird walking in what seems to be deliberate patterns. Thanks to the help of the kind school janitor, Mr. Ulysses, April is able to get a "bird's-eye view" of Joey's playground designs. She begins to recognize the quiet boy's unique perspective. The Buddy Bench also turns out to be a place for April to make a new friend, Veena, a new student from India. Together, April and Veena try to understand Joey, who would prefer to be left alone with his "tracings." As more attention is drawn to Joey's talent, his private world is disrupted and April learns that actions have consequences. April also begins to consider viewpoints other than her own, a sign of her growing empathy. As Mr. Ulysses tells her, "I came to the conclusion a long time ago that people often see only what they expect to see. If they don't expect much, they don't see much." The story is told primarily from April's point of view, but chapters giving more insight into Joey-including his art-enrich and expand this thoughtful novel of emotional growth. VERDICT Readers will think about this novel after they've closed the book. It's full of heart and is sure to encourage looking at the world through a new lens.-Shelley Sommer, Inly School, Scituate, MA

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2020
April, beginning sixth grade and dealing with her own friendship issues, takes an interest in a younger student with puzzling behaviors and a surprising artistic skill. April's former best friend has joined the cool-girl group, so to avoid cafeteria humiliation, she volunteers to staff the school's Buddy Bench at recess. Fourth grader Joey Byrd spends recess lying on the ground with his eyes shut or walking in circles around the playground. April and fellow Buddy Bench volunteer Veena slowly form a connection with Joey and--with the help of a trip to the roof, courtesy of the custodian--realize that Joey's walks actually create large-scale drawings in the playground's dirt. Joey, in chapters written in his voice, gradually warms up to the girls, but when they bring his art to the attention of the whole school, the scrutiny puts him in situations outside his comfort zone. Joey is clearly neuroatypical, though never diagnosed in the book ("Does it matter?" the guidance counselor asks when April wonders whether he's on the autism spectrum). April's social struggles are authentic, and the intergrade dynamics of elementary school ring true. Pearsall writes about compassion without preachiness, bringing the story's threads together in a satisfying ending that's feel-good but far from sappy. Black-and-white art is interspersed.

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

May 1, 2020
April, beginning sixth grade and dealing with her own friendship issues, takes an interest in a younger student with puzzling behaviors and a surprising artistic skill. April's former best friend has joined the cool-girl group, so to avoid cafeteria humiliation, she volunteers to staff the school's Buddy Bench at recess. Fourth grader Joey Byrd spends recess lying on the ground with his eyes shut or walking in circles around the playground. April and fellow Buddy Bench volunteer Veena slowly form a connection with Joey and-with the help of a trip to the roof, courtesy of the custodian-realize that Joey's walks actually create large-scale drawings in the playground's dirt. Joey, in chapters written in his voice, gradually warms up to the girls, but when they bring his art to the attention of the whole school, the scrutiny puts him in situations outside his comfort zone. Joey is clearly neuroatypical, though never diagnosed in the book ("Does it matter?" the guidance counselor asks when April wonders whether he's on the autism spectrum). April's social struggles are authentic, and the intergrade dynamics of elementary school ring true. Pearsall writes about compassion without preachiness, bringing the story's threads together in a satisfying ending that's feel-good but far from sappy. Black-and-white art is interspersed. Sarah Rettger

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)