Almost Zero

Gr 3—5—An enjoyable story with a good life lesson. When spunky Dyamonde makes an ill-advised attempt to boss her mother into buying her a pair of red high-top sneakers, her mother decides to provide her with only what she needs: literally the clothes on her back, spiriting away the rest of her wardrobe. Dyamonde fumes over the humiliation of wearing the same outfit, stains included, several days in a row. A classmate's tragedy shakes her out of her funk, and she rises to the occasion, asking her mother to return the rest of her clothing so she can give much of it to the girl, whose family has lost everything in a fire. Her individual effort grows into a school-wide clothing drive, and Dyamonde receives a much greater gift than a pair of high tops: the fulfillment of giving to others. The moral of the story is delivered in an endearing, accessible package. Grimes's style is easygoing and straightforward, her characters real and engaging. Christie's sketches in thick lines of black ink add to the book's appeal.—Alyson Low, Fayetteville Public Library, AR