The Talented Clementine
Written by Sara Pennypacker
Illustrated by Marla Frazee
Reviewed by Frankie K. (age 9)
In The Talented Clementine by Sara Pennypacker, Clementine, the main character, is having trouble finding a talent for the talent show. In the beginning, Clementine’s teacher tells the class that they are having a third and fourth grade talent show. Clementine is worried and says that she has no talents. In the middle, Clementine asks Margaret, her best friend, if she could help her with finding a talent. They go in ABC order on a list of talents but there are still no talents for Clementine. In the end, the talent show comes and Clementine doesn’t have an act. Then Margaret’s teacher who has a big part in the talent show has to leave because of an emergency. You better read the book to find out what happens.
The Talented Clementine is a great book. I really like the solution because it shows kindness. In the book the problem is that Clementine has no talents. I don’t want to give away the ending but the solution shows kindness. Also, the pictures in the book show feelings really well. There are a lot of detailed pictures and you can understand the pictures easily. For example, you can really tell that Clementine was embarrassed when she tells Principal Rice that she has no talents. The problem is funny because having no talents doesn’t usually happen in real life but it could happen.
I would recommend this book to people who like funny realistic fiction books. The story teaches readers to be kind and elementary school students can relate to Clementine. Also the main character faces funny realistic problems. You should really take some time to read this book.