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This is the second installment in the “Miss O and Friends” series created by Speregen. The girls are fifth-graders who attend the same private school in New York City, with different ethnic and social backgrounds. Harlie is this book’s focus; stellar gymnast, comic book enthusiast, and soon-to-be older sister, she is a by turns disciplined and a free spirit.
Harlie celebrates her eleventh birthday at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA); happily, her party coincides with a fabulous comic book art display. A good time is had by all, especially after the girls come up with a brainstorm – they will create a new superhero based on the guest of honor and her roly-poly dog. The character, Harlie Rox, will be immortalized with a mural on the wall of the Latte Lounge, a spare room where the gang hangs out when they gather at Harlie’s apartment. In addition, a comic book will be created featuring the new superhero.
Life just gets better and better. Harlie finds out she is in the home stretch to qualify for the Team USA Junior Gymnasts Classic. If she does well in the next round, she will be on her way to Florida to compete. As if she didn’t have enough to do with school and gymnastics, she accepts a job babysitting a new neighbor after school. It can be stressful managing a willful five-year-old, but Harlie rises to the occasion.
Then her mom drops the bomb – she is pregnant, and Harlie will have to switch her identity from only child to older sister. Although her friends are excited for her, at first Harlie is not herself thrilled about the new changes in her life. Sacrifices loom ahead as the family adjusts to the new-addition-to-come. Although the solutions are a bit simplistic, my young friend and I are staunch fans of Miss O and her compatriots. This book made us laugh out loud more than once. It’s two thumbs up for Speregen and her girls.
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Miss O and Friends: Room for One More