Bea and her mom have always been a team. It's always been just the two of them, with lots of love and support from her Grandma Bea and Aunt Tam. But on the first page of this story, Mom is marrying Wendell, who comes with 3 sons and 3 pets, and they are expecting a baby of their own. They have to leave their cozy just-the-girls condo and move into the big, noisy all-boys house.
Bea and his youngest son, Bryce, have been in the same class since 2nd grade and they don't get along. Bryce hangs with the bullies in their class and has become what Bea calls a bully-follower.
As you might suspect from the title, this story focuses on Bea's family and Bryce's family becoming one, big family. But there is so much more to this contemporary middle grade novel. In addition to the struggles of a newly blended family, Stoddard has woven in 5th grade characters who are dealing with a variety of tough issues: OCD, divorce, a big move, the death of a parent, and bullying. Mix in a chauvinistic principal, and two incredibly cool 5th grade teachers, and the stage is set for fun and growth.
Bea and the other soccer-loving girls at her school have always been told there isn't enough interest to form a girls' soccer team, but they are welcome to play on the boys' team. On the boys' team, however, they don't get much playing time. When a new girl moves in who loves soccer as much as Bea, they decide it's time to force the issue, so they find 11 girls to play. The principal insists they must also have a sub and a manager, so they find those as well, and the girls' team is born. Never one to make things easy on the girls, the principal insists on being their coach.
He clearly doesn't think the girls are as good as the boys, and he creates resentment towards the girls when he reduces the boys' practices to 3 days a week so that he can coach the girls 2 days a week.
That's not good enough for these girls - they are talented soccer players and want to get even better. They decide to practice without him, but he insists they can't practice without a staff member there to supervise them. Enter the very cool 5th grade teachers.
Ms. Blaise and Ms. Kravitz have been busy masterfully creating a cohesive, bully-free classroom, introducing their class to ASL to welcome a new student who is deaf (and moves in just in time to be the 11th girl on the soccer team!), creating a love of reading among their students, and are now supervising the girls' extra soccer practices while they grade papers and plan lessons.
This is a great story! I appreciate the way Stoddard keeps the adults as an active part of the children's day-to-day activities, but allows the children to handle the tough situations, knowing that their parents are right there to support them.
Bea grows so much through her experiences. It is clear that she is mature in many ways, having lived in an adult world most of her life. She is observant, responsible, and internalizes the things her adults teach her. The way she supports and protects her best friend, Maximilian, is so sweet.
But it is also clear that she has some things to overcome. What makes Bea so endearing is that she knows she has things to work on and she embraces the opportunities for growth as they come along, even if she has to grump about it a bit first. I love the way she sees right through the principal and holds his feet to the fire!
I won't spoil the ending, but it's perfect - without being a perfect ending.
Author Lindsey Stoddard's website
Interview with Lindsey Stoddard
