  | Full Text Reviews: Booklist - 12/15/2015 *Starred Review* Waylon, a science-obsessed boy with a good heart, initially feels troubled when a charismatic classmate divides all the boys into two competing teams, separating friends and creating discord. Worse, he doesn’t assign Waylon to either team. Meanwhile, Baxter Boylen, a student who left last fall and was rumored to have spent time in prison, returns to their third-grade classroom looking bigger, older, and tougher than ever—and on a class visit to the police station, the officers know him suspiciously well. But when Baxter reaches out for help, Waylon knows exactly how to respond. Soon they are planning an unusual jailbreak, while unexpectedly bringing their classmates back together again. (Clementine fans will be happy to find her in Waylon’s class.) Pennypacker is at her best here, creating vivid characters and showing the subtly shifting connections between them. Waylon emerges as a quirky, sympathetic individual who understands that his family and friends are fundamental to his happiness. The subplot involving his gone-goth 14-year-old sister is an unexpected pleasure, but the groundswell of goodwill culminating in the climactic scene will have the greatest impact. Alternately laugh-aloud funny and melt-your-heart tender, this illustrated chapter book is a great read-aloud choice and a memorable find for independent readers.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Pennypacker’s Clementine series is a beloved mainstay, and this offshoot brings the same level of charm and insight. - Copyright 2015 Booklist. School Library Journal - 01/01/2016 Gr 2–5—The creative team behind the "Clementine" books (Hyperion) launch a new series starring Waylon, Clementine's science-obsessed classmate. His universe is exploding in a very personal "Big Bang." Popular kid Arlo has divided all the fourth-grade boys into rival teams, which bums out Waylon, who prefers collaboration over competition. And his older sister Charlotte, aka Neon, has gone goth. When Neon reveals that it's just an act to keep both their parents and school cliques at a distance, Waylon responds, "Oh wow! Batesian mimicry!" New kid in school Baxter helps Waylon solve the rival teams problem when they concoct a plan to free Dumpster Eddy, a local shelter dog whose time is dwindling. In a rollicking conclusion, a group of kids defy team lines—even Arlo joins in—and work together on the canine caper. Pennypacker draws readers in quickly. Waylon's conflict with Arlo is established in the first chapter, and much of the action takes place during the high points of any kid's school day—lunch and recess. Waylon's parents are refreshingly stable yet slightly quirky characters, and Neon is intriguing enough to merit her own series. In Pennypacker's skillful hands, Waylon is an appealing everykid whose passion for science just might spark readers' curiosity as he contemplates ideas from angstroms to alien hand syndrome. VERDICT A winning, welcome new series for chapter book readers.—Marybeth Kozikowski, Sachem Public Library, Holbrook, NY - Copyright 2016 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Loading...
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