Serena Says
by Tanita S. Davis
Intermediate, Middle School    Tegen/HarperCollins    272 pp.    g
11/20    978-0-06-293697-4    $16.99

Serena St. John is her sixth-grade class ambassador and an aspiring vlogger, under the moniker Serena Says. Although she’s never actually posted any of the videos she makes, Serena is sure it’s great practice for her to finally become a classroom reporter. Through vlogging, she’s able to speak her mind about anything, including her excitement to see and reconnect with her best friend JC, who has been recovering from a kidney transplant. However, thanks to their (perfect) classmate Leilani Camacho, the reunion is chillier than expected — and Serena is left to question the future of the friendship. As if that weren’t enough, her position as class ambassador is jeopardized, and she reluctantly joins the student senate. Throughout the story, Serena develops an earnest and sincere voice the world needs to hear — both virtually and in real life. The dialogue is well paced, with Serena’s anxious and questioning internal thoughts juxtaposed with witty and reflective vlog posts (represented in bold font). Davis intersperses day-to-day occurrences with heavier topics such as physical and mental illness and cultural representation. An appealing cast of family, friends, and classmates helps point Serena to the conclusion, regarding being herself: “It might be terrible. It might be a disaster…But it might not.”

From the January/February 2021 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.