Daredevil Morgan by Ted Staunton
Published by Formac Publishing Company Limited on January 1st 2018
ISBN: 1459505069
Pages: 96
Goodreads

Who pushes you more: your friends or your frenemies? This segment of the “Be Brave, Morgan!” chapter book series takes place at the Fall Fair. Morgan is irritated again and again with Aldeen. Events that seem to be disasters (she smashes his prize pumpkin, repeatedly bonks him in the bumper car, and grabs him on the scary Asteroid Belt ride) all turn out fine in the end, and maybe Aldeen isn’t the enemy after all.

The Lerner Books website says, “The dyslexia-friendly features of the book include easier-to-read typography, page layout, and reduced-contrast paper stock…”

There are pen and ink sketches on almost every double-page spread, and the limited text invites younger readers. Some sentences are short, some are quite long, yet the simple language keeps the story from being overwhelming. Be advised Aldeen thinks “Rides suck.” Then Morgan repeats it a few pages later.

This episode makes me want to read more about Morgan in the rest of the series. This could be used as a friendship story, saving face, or as an example of how to make lemonade out of lemons. If you do use it as a read aloud, be prepared to replace the swear word if it is a concern for you.

Reviewed by Lynn Mayer, Librarian, Old Town Elementary School, Old Town