Fury on the Dance Floor

March 15, 2018
Two preteen girl superheroes struggle with their personal differences and contend with a diabolical geriatric. In this second episode of the Bug Girl series, aside from training together, seventh-graders Emily (who still has not found her superhero moniker) and Bug Girl/Amanda are far from a happy duo. In school, Emily is obsessed with popularity, while Amanda is way more interested in its entomology club. Amanda is extremely concerned about the creature living in the town's grotesquely polluted lake, but Emily wants little more than to be queen of the upcoming dance. Amanda's superpowers, among them flight and a protective exoskeleton, spur Emily's jealousy, as her abilities are seemingly lackluster. Meanwhile, the school's passel of upper-echelon girls is dwindling as they begin to disappear. There's also a new student, Geri, who ups the ante on how to be a mean girl, dishing out fashion-violation tickets and otherwise bullying relentlessly. There's also something about Geri that makes Amanda's antennae tingle. Each chapter begins with a quirky bug fact, and the plentiful illustrations are a nod to superhero comics. The key characters appear to be white. Told in the third person primarily from Amanda's perspective, the hijinks and variety of comical ne'er-do-wells combine to make a case that envy may be the most venomous evil of all.This entomological adventure celebrates teamwork and girl power. (Adventure. 7-12)

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April 1, 2018
Grades 5-8 A new threat comes buzzing into Oyster Cove to further strain the relationship between developing superheroes Amanda, better known as insect-powered Bug Girl, and her superstrong (though lacking a superhero name) former BFF Emily. It seems that Oyster Cove Middle School has acquired a new queen bee, Geri, who hands out devastating fashion tickets in the hallways and shoulders Emily aside in the race to be elected Dancing Queen of the upcoming seventh-grade Disco Daze Dance. Meanwhile, along with hearing exciting news that a large cryptid has been spotted in Rickets Lake, Amanda and her fashion-forward classmate-sidekick Vincent suddenly notice that girls in the ranks of the school's it crowd have begun to vanish mysteriously. Fashion-plate portraits accompany the frequent sidenotes on insects as this relentlessly tongue-in-cheek tale follows Bug Girl and her allies as they nab polluters, initiate a cleanup of the lake's fetid waters, and attempt to rescue the missing socialites. Fans of Bug Girl (2017) will definitely want to fasten their mandibles on this arch sequel.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2018
Amanda, a.k.a. Bug Girl, tackles her new superhero role and seventh grade, with mixed results. Her increasing powers are stymied by mean-girl drama and a growing rift between herself and crime-fighting partner Emily. These super-girls must learn to work together to save their classmates from a mysterious monster. Black-and-white, blue-accented illustrations and entomological profiles are interspersed throughout the lively superhero romp.

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)