Save The Not-So-Uniform Life of Holly Mei for a fast-paced end-of-the-year read!

Holly-Mei has recently moved with her family from Toronto, Canada to Hong Kong because of her mother's new - and pretty high-pressure job. And it couldn't have happened soon enough. There was drama going on with her best friend Natalie, leaving her feeling left out of the social group she used to hang out with. So why not make a new start in a new city on a new continent?

Hong Kong seems glamorous, filled with beaches, high rises, and families with lots of money. Holly-Mei's new school, a prestigious prep school, offers lots of experiences that she didn't have in Toronto. She's enjoying all these new experiences, including some friendships with boys that she didn't have in her previous life.

But, as is often the case, all is not as it seems. The change in culture means a change in expectations and slowly, Holly-Mei realizes that her actions in adult company influence her mother's reputation, something her mother isn't always happy about. Many of the students she mingles with are working under tremendous pressure to maintain family expectations.

As she learns more, she comes to appreciate that maybe things weren't so horrible back in Toronto. Every place has its challenges. Like many middle-grade books with happy endings, this one comes with a positive resolution of her friendship with Natalie, and the formation of new friendships with Gemma, Rainbow, Snowy, Theo, and Dev.

Filled with the right amount of adventure, friendship-sorting-out, and an interesting setting, this is a book I think many realistic fiction lovers will enjoy. It's the first book in the series and I think many readers will want to continue reading about Holly-Mei's adventures. She's got the right amount of spunk and thoughtfulness that kids can identify with.

Special thanks to Inkyard Press for sending me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

Don't forget

to sign up for the FREE virtual 2023 MSELA Summit, the virtual event of the year for Middle School English Language Arts Teachers!  It's being held from July 24-28.  

 

For five days, this virtual, FREE conference will bring you workshop-style interviews with dozens of teacher guest experts (and I’m one of them!) who have incredibly valuable advice to share with Middle School English / Language Arts teachers as it relates to heading back to school.

 

Interested?  Click here to register.