by Moe Zilla

Created on: September 15, 2010

Lili is always getting marked absent at school, because her voice is so soft that her teacher can't hear her when she's taking attendance. And when the teacher asks everyone to choose a partner, nobody choose Lili, so she ends up with the teacher. "Lili, sweetheart, you have to learn to speak up," the teacher says. Of course, the teacher doesn't have that problem.

"Her voice was so loud, you had to listen to it whether you wanted to or not."

I liked the book's colorful illustrations by S.D. Schindler. It looks like she used color pencils, but she draws realistic caricatures of the students in Lili's classroom, making the story feel believable yet also cartoonish. Lili looks like an ordinary girl, while her teacher - Mrs. Backmeyer - , is drawn with her hair in a flamboyantly frizzy double-bun. And when Lili complains that even birds and fish could hear Mrs. Backmeyer's voice, Schindler dutifully depicts rows of birds lining up, and even a row of fish!

The story was written by Gennifer Choldenko, who wrote the Newberry honor book, "Al Capone Does My Shirts," and she fills this story with poignant details about Lili's shyness. At recess Lili curls up and reads in the corner of her classroom by the guinea pig. And when she does get a partner in class, it's with a girl who takes credit for all the work Lili does. She even takes Lili's cake in the school cafeteria, trading Lili her unwanted carrots.

Lili scowls, but she still doesn't say anything. Her new substitute teacher is Mrs. Snyderman, who "didn't do much of anything, except talk on her cell to Mr. Snyderman." Later Mrs. Snyderman hides in the bathroom "much longer than it took to do your business no matter what kind it was." And then Lily sees her pesky partner about to pour glue into the guinea pig's water!

It's a surprisingly dramatic story, and it's very satisfying when Lili finally starts to shout. I think this would be a great story for little girls, to teach them it's okay to speak up for yourself. "Lili's face burned. Her mouth tasted like Tabasco sauce. From deep inside came a voice so loud, it made the windows rattle, the desks rumble, and the rug come up off the floor.

"Stop it!" Lili shouts - and everyone in the classroom hears here.

And then the next day when the class chooses up partners, somebody finally chooses Lili.

Learn more about this author, Moe Zilla.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.