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I received this book for free from Hear Our Voices Book Tours and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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Lola Reyes Is So Not Worried by Cindy L. Rodriguez Published by HarperCollins on September 17, 2024
Genres: Juvenile Fiction / Social Themes / Emotions & Feelings
Pages: 288
Format: Hardcover
Source: Hear Our Voices Book Tours and the publisher
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In this magical middle grade adventure by Cindy L. Rodriguez, a Guatemalan American girl fights to stop her cursed worry dolls before they blanket her friends and neighbors in anxiety—and the grief she carries over the loss of her father. Perfect for fans of The Doll People and The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez!
Lola Reyes doesn’t want to leave Guatemala, a place full of warmth and sun, laughter and music—where her abuela and prima and tíos and tías surround her with love. Back in Sunnyside, it’s cold. There’s schoolwork and chores. And her mama transforms into Lola’s super-serious school principal, Dr. Reyes.
Back at home...Lola can see, crystal clear, the empty place where Pop used to be. So Lola decides to bring a little bit of Guatemala—and Pop—back with her. She discovers his box of childhood worry dolls and sneaks them into her luggage, ignoring the warnings on the box not to use them. Later, when she tells them all her worries, from her friendship woes to the way Mama won’t talk about how sad she is, the worry dolls come to life. Worse—they escape.
Lola has to enlist her neighbor and nemesis, Chance Townsend, to recapture the dolls because she discovers they’re cursed. And as they absorb worries, they’ll grow bigger and bigger. If Lola can’t find a way to stop them, they’ll burst, releasing all the worries they’ve absorbed a hundredfold on everyone in town. But when breaking the curse might mean confronting her own anxieties and grief, will Lola be able to face her emotions before it’s too late?
Welcome to my tour stop for Lola Reyes is So Not Worried by Cindy L. Rodriguez, hosted by Hear Our Voices Tours. This was a fun and magical adventure story that also dealt with serious issues of grief and worrying. After losing her father, 10 year old Lola Reyes is visiting Guatemala to celebrate his life with his family. She enjoys a summer of fun and healing with her cousin, but it still doesn’t seem like enough to fill the void left by her father’s absence.
Always Read the Warning
When she finds a box of worry dolls hidden in a closet, she takes them with her before fully translating the message her father left with the dolls as a warning. The dolls get bigger when they absorb worries and shrink when those worries are absolved… and that is just the beginning of it.
New Situations and Big Feelings
This story is full of humor, friendship, adventure and tenderness. Going into 5th grade Lola is dealing with a lot of new things and Big feelings about them. She is in a new, smaller house; her best friend has made a new friend while she was gone and most importantly her Pop is not there to spend time with her while her mom, the principal works.
Lots of Humor
The worry doll antics are hilarious! I even laughed out loud a few times, especially when one of them was trying to pet schnookums the cat. The friendship between Chance and Lola is also comical. But as they work together to corral the dolls you see their friendship grow despite how they started as rivals.
Dealing with Anxiety
Each interaction will help a young reader to realize that even when you have anxiety about something in your life, there is always another perspective to look at that might take away some of that anxiety.
Lola Reyes is So Not Worried is a definite recommend for upper elementary to middle school age readers. If you know someone who is dealing with anxiety this will be a great book to gift them this holiday season.
Check out the other tour stops today:
- @flyrhopa – Fan Art
- @glendaofalltime – Favorite Quotes
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