Name: Shine!
Rating: 4.5 (2 reviews)
ISBN: 9781524717674

Chris Grabenstein

J. J. Grabenstein

When seventh-grader Piper's father is hired by Chumley Prep, a school where every student seems to be the best at everything, she gets the chance to compete for the prestigious Excelsior Award.

Shine!

J.J. Grabenstein

"Inspirational, commonsensical, and a whole lot of fun." --James Patterson Everyone deserves to shine in this sparkling new book from the New York Times bestselling author of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library, Chris Grabenstein, and coauthor J.J. Grabenstein--just right for fans of Word of Mouse and The Fourteenth Goldfish. "Who do you want to be?" asks Mr. Van Deusen. "And not when you grow up. Right here, right now." Shine on! might be the catchphrase of twelve-year-old Piper's hero--astronaut, astronomer, and television host Nellie Dumont Frisse--but Piper knows the truth: some people are born to shine, and she's just not one of them. That fact has never been clearer than now, since her dad's new job has landed them both at Chumley Prep, a posh private school where everyone seems to be the best at something and where Piper definitely doesn't fit in. Bursting with humor, heart, science, possibilities, and big questions, Shine! is a story about finding your place in the universe--a story about figuring out who you are and who you want to be.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Author: JJ and Chris Grabenstein

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 5/5

Publication Date: November 5, 2019

Publisher: Random House

Recommended Age: 10+ (bullying)

Synopsis: "Who do you want to be?" asks Mr. Van Deusen. "And not when you grow up. Right here, right now." 

Shine on! might be the catchphrase of twelve-year-old Piper's hero--astronaut, astronomer, and television host Nellie Dumont Frisse--but Piper knows the truth: some people are born to shine, and she's just not one of them. That fact has never been clearer than now, since her dad's new job has landed them both at Chumley Prep, a posh private school where everyone seems to be the best at something and where Piper definitely doesn't fit in. 

Bursting with humor, heart, science, possibilities, and big questions, Shine! is a story about finding your place in the universe--a story about figuring out who you are and who you want to be.

Review: I really enjoyed this book. It was a cute story for younger kids that show the love of STEM/science and individuality. I think it's really important to get kids interested in STEM centered courses and I love that the main character was interested in it. I also think it's really important seeing as the main character was a female and I think we, as a society, still have a way to go in encouraging females to persue STEM classes. Also, the overall message is amazing. Figuring out who you want to be isn't for when you just "grow up". It's a now thing and an always thing. You change, you grow, you should always be thinking of who you aspire to be and how you can improve for now and not later.

My only downside is that sometimes during the book the pacing wanes and I feel like the bully issue wasn't entirely resolved but otherwise it was a great read!

Verdict: Definitely a book for yourself or younger kids!

Shine!

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