Lola Levine is Not Mean!

Written by: Monica Brown

Illustrated by: Angela Dominguez

Genre: realistic fiction

Awards: We Are Kid Lit Summer Reading List 2017

Summary:

This story follows second-grader Dolores "Lola" Levine who's been dubbed 'mean' after accidentally injuring another kid while playing soccer. She is an enthusiastic young girl and her love for soccer is sometimes expressed a little too zealously. Lola struggles to connect with her peers after the accident and is banned from playing by the school principal. Her family offers her support and advice which boosts her confidence and guides her as she makes amends. Her family does not try to change her personality but encourages her to be more careful. Throughout the book, Lola demonstrates her Latin and Jewish heritage through her diary entries and other cultural references. 

Teacher Evaluation:

This book is a great transitional story from picture books to chapter books for first and second graders. It's not text-heavy and includes some unique black and white drawings to keep students engaged. I would use this book for character analysis since each character is charismatic in a variety of ways. We would create a character trait chart with textual evidence to support our findings. We would also consider how the character descriptions help readers create a picture of these characters in their minds.