Delicates

January 1, 2021

Gr 8 Up-In Sheets, Thummler explored teenage social dilemmas, grief, and even class conflict within the bounds of a haunted Laundromat. Her follow-up matches the tone and complexity of its predecessor. Marjorie, a white teen who in Sheets grappled with bullying and being forced to step up after the death of her mother, is gaining confidence at school while remaining friends with Wendell, one of the sheet-shaped ghosts at her family's laundry business. In the span of a few tentative encounters, however, the book pivots to the story of her classmate Eliza, a Black teen who is sinking into loneliness and depression and feeling like a living ghost. Marjorie must weigh whether to help a peer and risk her own social status, while Eliza faces the task of claiming her own strangeness so as to not lose her sense of self. Thummler's shaky, slightly elongated figures interact in muted neon illustrations, conveying adolescent emotion. With illustrations that match the often dreamy, multilayered narrative, this tale depicts the interplay between inner turmoil and external pressures with an aching accuracy that provides a powerful lens readers might use to observe their own difficult experiences. VERDICT A strong second foray into Marjorie and Wendell's slightly spooky world, this tale will be best appreciated by readers who can maturely manage difficult content about depression and suicidal thoughts.-Emilia Packard, Austin

Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2021
A bullied eighth grader wishes she were a ghost--and then meets real ghosts. In this sequel to Sheets (2018), Marjorie begins eighth grade as part of the popular crowd but is unclear whether she and her crush, Colton, are more than friends. Her family is doing their best to cope with the death of her mom, and Marjorie is helping out more at the family laundromat. The laundromat has a community of ghosts that Marjorie can see, but she keeps them a secret because she doesn't want to be labeled as weird. When their teacher asks Marjorie and her friends to look after his oldest daughter, Eliza, who is repeating eighth grade, Eliza--a photographer buff with an interest in the paranormal--instead becomes the target of their bullying. Marjorie is a well-developed character, and readers will empathize with her dilemma over whether to speak up for Eliza and risk her own ostracization. The author tackles in an accessible, nuanced way delicate topics like bullying, death, suicide, and feeling lost. Although this volume can be read as a stand-alone, reading the first book will improve comprehension of the story and understanding of the characters--especially where the ghosts are concerned. Marjorie and her friends are White; Colton is brown, Eliza and her family are Black. An original exploration of what it means to be seen and accepted. (Graphic fiction. 10-14)

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February 1, 2021
Grades 6-8 In this sequel to Sheets (2018), summer is coming to a close for Marjorie and Wendell, her ghost friend, but going into eighth grade has Marjorie a little uneasy. She spent all of seventh grade a social outcast, and this year, Tessi and her friends have made it their mission to make Marjorie popular. The eighth grade class also has a repeater student--Eliza, the daughter of a teacher, Mr. Duncan. Eliza is obsessed with photographing a ghost, even as she increasingly feels like one among her peers. Meanwhile, Wendell is feeling rather ignored, and when sneaking out, he often runs into Eliza, who doesn't recognize him as a ghost. Thummler's illustrations showcase a pastel palette that nicely evokes the late summer atmosphere. Beautifully drawn environments, full of fine-lined detail and dappled light, make great backdrops to the stylized character designs. This title encapsulates the rockiness of navigating friendships and troubled emotional states of middle school, with a dash of friendly paranormal elements to lighten the mood. Hand to fans of Laura Lee Gulledge's The Dark Matter of Mona Starr (2020).

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