Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree by Lauren Tarshis

Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree by Lauren Tarshis Review by Simran

Have you ever wondered what life would be like for a seventh grader? Two girls from William Gladstone Middle School, Emma-Jean and Colleen, have a pretty good iea, and they can describe it in one word: complicated.

This wonderful, realistic fiction book is about 12-year-old Emma-Jean Lazrus, who is a kind, unself-conscious girl who relies on logic to solve her and her friend's problems. After the passing away of her father two years ago, Emma-Jean has followed the footsteps of her dad's hero, a legendary French mathematician, Jules Henri Poincare. Emma-Jean describes herself to be different from her other fellow seventh graders. The only friends she has are the school janitor, her language arts teacher, her loving mother, her father's parakeet Henri, and Vikram Adwani, a university student who has rented the third floor of Emma-Jean's house. Another important character in the story is Colleen Pomerantz. She's one of the nicest seventh graders, but she cares too much about what others think of her. She has many friends, and has a loyal heart.

The story takes place during the usual busy day of seventh grade when Emma-Jean discovers Colleen crying in the bathroom. She claims to be crying because her best friend, Kaitlin Vogel, invited the fierce, manipulating Laura Gilray to her annual ski trip in Vermont instead of her. When Emma-Jean realizes how mean of a person Laura Gilroy is, she puts her logic and intelligence into action to help her new friend out.

I would describe this book to be engaging, interesting, and insightful. This book teaches you that you not only have to put your mind into the problem, but also your heart which is why I find it to be a good book. Also, this book's genre is one of my favorite genres of all time. I love to read about stories that can relate to the real world. Although this book could be enjoyed by many, I think it would be more of a book that a girl would enjoy. All in all, my rating for this book is 4/5 stars.

Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree by Lauren Tarshis is a book you would want to run to your local library and check out kind of book. For further reading, be sure to read the sequel, Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell in Love.