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Description
What if your pencil had all the answers? Would you ace every test? Would you know what your teachers were thinking?
When Ava Anderson finds a scratched up pencil, she doodles like she would with any other pencil. But when she writes a question in the margin of her math quiz, she hears a clear answer in a voice no one else seems to hear. With the help of her friend Sophie, Ava figures out that the pencil will answer factual questions only--those with definite right or wrong answers--but won't predict the future. Ava and Sophie discover all kinds of uses for the pencil, and Ava's confidence grows with each answer. But it's getting shorter with every sharpening, and when the pencil reveals a scary truth about Ava's family, she realizes that sometimes the bravest people are the ones who live without all the answers . . .
Publication date
April 19, 2016
Genre
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781681190204
Lexile Measure
720
Publisher
Bloomsbury U.S.A. Children's Books
BISAC categories
JUV039060 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Friendship JUV037000 - Juvenile Fiction | Fantasy & Magic JUV035000 - Juvenile Fiction | School & Education
Library of Congress categories
Self-confidence in children Self-confidence Families Family life Schools Supernatural Paranormal fiction Questions and answers Pencils
ALA/Booklist
Yes, there’s a magical pencil, but this remains an emotionally resonant portrait of a sweet girl whose struggles are firmly rooted in reality.
Publishers Weekly
Ava Anderson, a 12-year-old chronic worrier, comes across a pencil that appears to be able to talk, telling her the answers to her questions about everything from mathematical formulas for a quiz to concerns over family members' health problems. Messner (Manhunt) has created a relatable, sympathetic character in anxious Ava, and her story is at its best when Ava's life remains centered around the norms of her school, friends, and multigenerational family, as well as the lighter dilemmas and possibilities the magic pencil raises, such as whether it's cheating to use it on homework, or which boy likes her best friend. However, despite the potential of the premise, it flounders a bit when too many worries are piled onto Ava's plate, overloading the story with serious concerns over dementia, breast cancer, gambling addictions, and the death of a loved one. Ava eventually comes to learn that "life isn't about knowing all the answers," but she must bear some heavy burdens in order to come to that knowledge.
Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.
School Library Journal
Gr 4-6-Middle schooler Ava always seems to be nervous about something: her math quiz, an upcoming field trip to an adventure park, the possibility of her parents divorcing. When she uses an old blue pencil found in a junk drawer to write a question in the margin of her math quiz, a voice that only she can hear tells her the correct answer. It turns out that the pencil can answer factual questions of all kinds, from what people think and feel queries about schoolwork. Ava and her friend Sophie use the magical power of the pencil to try to help the elderly people in Ava's grandpa's old age home and in the process make discoveries about her grandpa's thoughts and wishes. So far so good, but when Ava discovers through the pencil that her mother has breast cancer and that her mother is about to postpone her mammogram so that she can accompany Ava on her adventure park trip, Ava finds herself having to call on all her inner resources to ensure that her mother goes for her test. In the process, she surprises herself at what she is able to do. When Ava realizes that the magic pencil is inhabited by a piece of her long-dead grandmother's spirit, she helps to make her grandfather's last moments happier. Ava is a sympathetic and well-rounded character, and the relationship, conflicts included, between her and the more outgoing Sophie rings true. The writing is smooth and the dialogue believable. VERDICT Firmly planted in realistic fiction with a single fantastical element, this story will appeal to Wendy Mass fans as well as those who love Messner's previous novels.
Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Kate Messner is a New York Times bestselling author of more than eighty books for kids. Her titles include award-winning picture books like Over and Under the Snow, The Whale’s Tale and the Otter’s Side of the Story, and Axolotl-Ella; novels like All the Answers, Breakout, and The Trouble with Heroes; graphic novels like Camp Monster; and the Wildlife Rescue chapter books. Kate also writes the popular History Smashers graphic nonfiction series and leads the multi-author team behind The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class series. She lives on Lake Champlain and spends her free time hiking, kayaking, and listening to way too many Broadway cast recordings. Kate Messner es una autora superventas del New York Times con más de ochenta libros para niños. Sus títulos incluyen libros ilustrados galardonados como Over and Under the Snow, The Whale’s Tale and the Otter’s Side of the Story y Axolotl-Ella; novelas como All the Answers, Breakout y The Trouble with Heroes; novelas gráficas como Camp Monster; y los libros de capítulos de Wildlife Rescue. Kate también escribe la popular serie de no ficción gráfica History Smashers y lidera el equipo de varios autores detrás de la serie The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class. Vive en el lago Champlain y pasa su tiempo libre haciendo senderismo, practicando kayak y escuchando demasiadas grabaciones del elenco de Broadway.
