Still Sal
by Kevin Henkes; illus. by the author
Primary    Greenwillow    256 pp.
10/24    9780063389625    $18.99
e-book ed.  9780063389649    $9.99

Sal Miller is six. Her life is changing so much that she tells Papa, “I’m not Sal anymore,” after her two-year-old sister, Poppy, moves into her bedroom. Sal “was a person who had a room of her own, and I—whoever I am—don’t.” When she gets a new haircut, she wonders, “If she looked different, would she feel different? Was she still Sal?” The start of first grade has been Sal’s big excitement of the summer, but when she and best friend Griffen are placed in different classes and he starts to make other friends, where does that leave Sal? “She’d thought Griff was a true friend, and now, she realized he was, in fact, a true enemy.” In this fourth installment of the series (most recently Oh, Sal, rev. 9/22), Henkes again navigates the vicissitudes of his young protagonist’s life with warmth, humor, and utmost respect. Though this is primarily Sal’s story, with her father there to hug, guide, and reassure her, all characters, including Mama, Poppy, and older brother Billy, are well drawn, with their own parts to play in this narrative about a loving family where true affection is palpable in every scene. With gentle support from parents and teachers, Sal comes to understand that her life might change, but she is still Sal.

From the ">November/December 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.