Gabby Garcia's Ultimate Playbook: Gabby Garcia, Book 1
By Darienne Stewart,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Goal-focused Latina scores big hit in series opener.
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What's the Story?
GABBY GARCIA'S ULTIMATE PLAYBOOK is not a diary, she emphasizes: It's her evolving strategy for how to win at life. And she needs it after an asbestos discovery abruptly shuts down her school just as she's this close to pitching a perfect game. Gabby, 12, is sure her new school will be thrilled to have her shine on their baseball team. But the team is already pretty good, and Gabby doesn't get the wild reception she expects. Each day, she lays out a goal and a plan to rack up some wins in her new school, and then reviews how it went. The losses keep stacking up, to the point where Gabby wonders if it's time to walk away from baseball -- or reconsider what winning really means.
Is It Any Good?
It's rare for a sports-themed book to hold broad appeal, but Iva-Marie Palmer deserves a trophy for serving up an engaging, relatable story about a Latina athlete that even gym-phobic kids can enjoy. Gabby Garcia's Ultimate Playbook celebrates talent of all kinds, and the passion and work that goes in to honing talent into skill. Kids will appreciate Gabby's confidence -- she's good, and she knows it -- but also recognize how easily self-assurance veers into obnoxious self-interest. Marta Kissi's artwork, a mix of illustrations and funny doodles, cheerfully riffs off Gabby's wandering imagination.
Predictably, Gabby gets a richer understanding of what it means to be a teammate, but her journey to that point is funny and charming. Everyone endures a losing streak now and then, and Gabby's playbook is a helpful idea starter for readers who might want to try her approach to self-improvement.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the format of Gabby Garcia's Ultimate Playbook. How does it compare with a typical diary?
This book uses a diary setup similar to the popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries series. What's appealing about this approach? When does it work better than a more conventional novel?
Have you ever written goals and strategies to achieve them as Gabby does? Try writing your own playbook.
Book Details
- Author: Iva-Marie Palmer
- Illustrator: Marta Kissi
- Genre: School
- Topics: Sports and Martial Arts , Friendship , Great Girl Role Models , Middle School
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
- Publication date: May 9, 2017
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 8 - 12
- Number of pages: 304
- Available on: Nook, Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: July 27, 2017
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