President of Poplar Lane (Poplar Kids Series #2)

by Margaret Mincks

Overview

The Poplar Kids are taking over their middle school in this uproariously funny sequel to Payback on Poplar Lane, which NYT bestselling author Chris Grabenstein called "the funniest book I've read in years."

Clover O'Reilly is super psyched to run for class president. As the second oldest of five sisters, she struggles to be heard in her ginormous family. But when you are president of the seventh grade, everyone has listen to you!

Comedy magician Mike the Unusual feels confident onstage. Offstage, life can be tricky. It's okay that his classmates don't understand him, but it bugs him when his dad suggests he needs more friends. Is he willing to give up his passion to win friends . . . and votes?

Clover and Mike compete to rule their school in this sequel to Payback on Poplar Lane that's filled with scheming advisers, political gaffes, missteps that lead to big laughs... and campaign sabotage!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780425290958
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	02/12/2019
Series:	Poplar Kids Series , #2
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
Lexile:	520L (what's this?)
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Margaret Mincks grew up the second oldest of eight kids. When she wasn't swimming, acting, making up slightly disturbing songs, or filming B-movie parodies with siblings and friends, she was writing stories. After graduating from the University of Virginia, she moved to Chicago to perform improv comedy with the iO Theater. She later worked at Spider, a literary magazine for six- to nine-year-olds, as an editor. She now lives in Florida with her family.

Editorial Reviews

"A full roster of believably rounded characters navigating sometimes-silly situations, rich with droll, timely humor. The votes are in: This one is a winner."—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2018-12-11

Poplar Lane's seventh-graders are back for a second outing following Payback on Poplar Lane (2018), exploring magic, manipulation, and politics.

Clover, a popular girl, and Mike, a budding magician, are both nominated to run for class president. New kid Amelia, a self-described "wonk," and Peter, a fervent entrepreneur, are running Mike's campaign, while Clover's best friend, Rachel, is managing hers. Unfortunately, Mike's managers craft an image of the candidate that's mostly deceitful, turning him from a boy who's happy to sit quietly with headphones on, comfortably blocking out the world, to a glad-handing, baby-kissing fraud. He's only running so he can use the election to help him get into magic camp. Clover is using her campaign to try to restore her connection to Rachel, who's become friends with Amelia, leaving her feeling excluded. The story is presented in the nicely distinct alternating voices of Clover, who's the second of five sisters and also coming to grips with her mother's newest pregnancy, and Mike, who's sure his father is disappointed in him for not being athletic. Mike is black, standing out among the mostly white central cast. In a refreshing variation on most middle school fiction, all of the kids have good points and bad, creating a full roster of believably rounded characters navigating sometimes-silly situations, rich with droll, timely humor.

The votes are in: This one is a winner. (Fiction. 9-12)

Kirkus Reviews