Ellie Engle Saves Herself

From award-winning YA author Leah Johnson comes her middle grade debut: a laugh-until-you-cry, cry-until-you-laugh story about friendship, change, and the power we have to love ourselves. Ellie Engle doesn't stand out. Not at home, where she's alone with her pet fish since her dad moved away and her mom has to work around the clock . Not at the bakery, where she helps out old Mr. Walker on the weekends. And definitely not at school, where her best friend Abby-the coolest, boldest, most talented girl in the world-drags Ellie along on her never-ending quest to "make her mark." To someone else, a life in the shadows might seem boring, or lonely. But not to Ellie. As long as she has Abby by her side and a comic book in her hand, she's quite content. Too bad life didn't bother checking in with Ellie. Because when a freak earthquake hits her small town, Ellie wakes up with the power to bring anything back to life with just her touch. And when a video of her using her powers suddenly goes viral, Ellie's life goes somewhere she never imagined-or wanted: straight into the spotlight. Surviving middle school is hard enough. Surviving middle school when paparazzi are camped out on your front lawn and an international pop singer wants you to use your powers on live tv and you might be in love with your best friend but she doesn't know it? Absolutely impossible.

1141993125
Ellie Engle Saves Herself

From award-winning YA author Leah Johnson comes her middle grade debut: a laugh-until-you-cry, cry-until-you-laugh story about friendship, change, and the power we have to love ourselves. Ellie Engle doesn't stand out. Not at home, where she's alone with her pet fish since her dad moved away and her mom has to work around the clock . Not at the bakery, where she helps out old Mr. Walker on the weekends. And definitely not at school, where her best friend Abby-the coolest, boldest, most talented girl in the world-drags Ellie along on her never-ending quest to "make her mark." To someone else, a life in the shadows might seem boring, or lonely. But not to Ellie. As long as she has Abby by her side and a comic book in her hand, she's quite content. Too bad life didn't bother checking in with Ellie. Because when a freak earthquake hits her small town, Ellie wakes up with the power to bring anything back to life with just her touch. And when a video of her using her powers suddenly goes viral, Ellie's life goes somewhere she never imagined-or wanted: straight into the spotlight. Surviving middle school is hard enough. Surviving middle school when paparazzi are camped out on your front lawn and an international pop singer wants you to use your powers on live tv and you might be in love with your best friend but she doesn't know it? Absolutely impossible.

25.99 In Stock
Ellie Engle Saves Herself

Ellie Engle Saves Herself

by Leah Johnson

Narrated by Rocky Anicette

Unabridged — 6 hours, 16 minutes

Ellie Engle Saves Herself

Ellie Engle Saves Herself

by Leah Johnson

Narrated by Rocky Anicette

Unabridged — 6 hours, 16 minutes

Audiobook (Digital)

$25.99
FREE With a B&N Audiobooks Subscription | Cancel Anytime
$0.00

Free with a B&N Audiobooks Subscription | Cancel Anytime

START FREE TRIAL

Already Subscribed? 

Sign in to Your BN.com Account


Listen on the free Barnes & Noble NOOK app


Related collections and offers

FREE

with a B&N Audiobooks Subscription

Or Pay $25.99

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

This heartwarming and laugh-out-loud story about a young girl who is gifted with supernatural abilities after a freak earthquake is the perfect read for anyone who’s ever wanted to fit in when they were born to stand out.

From award-winning YA author Leah Johnson comes her middle grade debut: a laugh-until-you-cry, cry-until-you-laugh story about friendship, change, and the power we have to love ourselves. Ellie Engle doesn't stand out. Not at home, where she's alone with her pet fish since her dad moved away and her mom has to work around the clock . Not at the bakery, where she helps out old Mr. Walker on the weekends. And definitely not at school, where her best friend Abby-the coolest, boldest, most talented girl in the world-drags Ellie along on her never-ending quest to "make her mark." To someone else, a life in the shadows might seem boring, or lonely. But not to Ellie. As long as she has Abby by her side and a comic book in her hand, she's quite content. Too bad life didn't bother checking in with Ellie. Because when a freak earthquake hits her small town, Ellie wakes up with the power to bring anything back to life with just her touch. And when a video of her using her powers suddenly goes viral, Ellie's life goes somewhere she never imagined-or wanted: straight into the spotlight. Surviving middle school is hard enough. Surviving middle school when paparazzi are camped out on your front lawn and an international pop singer wants you to use your powers on live tv and you might be in love with your best friend but she doesn't know it? Absolutely impossible.


Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Praise for Ellie Engle Saves Herself

*“Joyful and magical.”
School Library Journal (starred review)

*“A delightful, magical middle-grade debut . . . Excellently harnesses the anxiety that is prevalent throughout the junior-high years.”
Booklist (starred review)

*“A warmly rendered, lightly speculative love story about a girl learning to believe that she’s anything but ordinary.”
Publishers Weekly (starred review)

*“Johnson deftly explores identity and responsibility to ourselves and others in this joyful coming-of-age story. Marvelous.”
Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Ellie Engle is a force!”
—Kwame Mbalia, #1 New York Times best-selling author of the Tristan Strong series

“Leah Johnson’s middle-grade debut does it all, and more.”
—Kyle Lukoff, winner of the Newbery Honor Award and the Stonewall Award for Too Bright to See

“A funny, heartfelt reminder that we are all worthy of standing in the sun, rather than hiding in the shadows.”
—Erin Entrada Kelly, Newbery Medal winner for Hello, Universe and Newbery Honor winner for We Dream of Space

“Belongs on middle-grade shelves everywhere.”
—Kacen Callender, National Book Award, Lambda Literary Award, and
Coretta Scott King Honor–winning author of King and the Dragonflies

“A sheer delight from beginning to end!”
—Julie Murphy, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Dumplin’

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2023-03-14
A seventh grader doing her best to navigate middle school, a secret crush, and new family dynamics wakes up with a life-altering superpower.

Elliot “Ellie” Engle, a 12-year-old Black girl, has always been fine fading into the background with her comic books. Best friend Abby Ortega, who is cued as Latine, always seems to have the spotlight. Following an earthquake during a sleepover at Abby’s house, Ellie wakes up feeling weird. She returns home to find her beloved pet, Burt the Betta Fish, has died. While giving his eulogy, Ellie touches Burt, and, to her disbelief, he bounces back to life. Superhero-loving Ellie’s first thought is to keep her new abilities a secret or risk being shipped off to some institution like the X-Men’s Xavier Institute. But she tells Abby—incidentally her crush and therefore the object of her other big secret. Together, they attempt to test her powers, until an unfortunate incident on frog dissection day in science class throws Ellie’s life into a tailspin. Ellie must come to terms with hard truths, but along the way she learns she doesn’t have to live her life in the shadow of others and that true friends will support you through everything. This fast-paced, humorous novel will have readers racing to the end as they fall in love with Ellie’s quirky and authentic personality. Johnson deftly explores identity and responsibility to ourselves and others in this joyful coming-of-age story.

Marvelous. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)

Product Details

BN ID: 2940159936738
Publisher: Disney Press
Publication date: 05/02/2023
Edition description: Unabridged
Age Range: 8 - 11 Years
From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews