Review: Hailey Twitch is Not a Snitch by Lauren Barnholdt

Hailey Twitch is the typical second grader. She likes the friends she has and doesn't want any more. So when her teacher pairs her up with Addie Jokobeck she is not happy. For one thing, she wanted to be partners with Antonio or Russ. For another, Addie Jokobeck was a lover of rules and Hailey didn't think that loving and following all rules sounded very fun. To make her day even worse, Antonio was paired up with Natalie, the meanest girl in school. She was going to loose her friend to Natalie and be stuck making boring old french fries and following all the rules with Addie. Hailey was having a bad day.

Sitting in her room, trying hard not to stomp or yell about her bad day, Hailey hears something in her toy castle. What could it be? It's a tiny sprite named Maybelle. She was banished to live in Hailey's castle until someone made a wish for fun, which Hailey did. The problem is, Maybelle was banished because she didn't know how to be fun. She would be stuck living in the toy castle forever if she didn't find a way to help Hailey have fun.

This is a cute story about how children can be short sighted when it comes to friends sometimes. She thinks that the only way to be a friend is to boss them around. She quickly finds out that doesn't work. She also thinks friends don't tell on each other, so when Maybelle starts causing trouble, thinking it will be fun, Hailey takes the blame. Hailey has a lot to learn and gets in a lot of trouble before she learns it.

What I liked:

Hailey is spunky and makes mistakes, like most 2nd graders, but she also learns important lessons about friendship, sharing, and doing things for others.

What I disliked:

The ending was abrupt. It left us wondering what happened with Maybelle. Maybe we will need to get the sequel to find out? My daughter has already said yes to that possibility.

A few other reviews of Hailey Twitch is Not a Twitch:

Keep Reading to Your Child

Cindy's Love of Books

Hailey Twitch is Not a Snitch by Lauren Barnholdt and illustrated by Suzanne Beaky was published on May 1, 2010 by Sourcebooks. It is listed as chapter book for children 9 - 12 years old. I think some younger readers would love this story too.

Thanks for stopping by,

Kristin : )