Review by Booklist Review
Marya Khan loves big pumpkins, big words, and big trophies. The exuberant Pakistani American third-grader is peeved when Alexa, her white, blonde next-door neighbor, classmate, and frequent nemesis, is awarded a nifty pumpkin-shaped trophy at their town's fall festival. Determined to win a grand prize in something herself, Marya sets her sights on raising the most money for her school's charity fundraiser and single-mindedly launches "Operation Sell Tickets." Lively first-person narration captures the charming kid's comical enthusiasm as well as her nuanced, evolving relationship with Alexa. When the entire class works toward achieving a shared goal together, competition triumphantly turns into collaboration. As in the previous two books in the series, excerpts from Marya's "Word of the Day" diary preface the short chapters. Bushry's expressive grayscale cartoon vignettes highlight Marya's range of emotions, from jealousy to jubilation. A recipe for pumpkin-spice cookies is a nice treat at the end. Sweet and savory, this enticing early chapter book is a clear winner.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Marya Khan finds that winning can mean different things. Marya believes that bigger means better, especially when it comes to pumpkins. The bigger the pumpkin, the more pumpkin curry, cookies, cake, and bread Mama can make! But the family's trip to the pumpkin patch sours for Marya when she sees her perfectly annoying classmate Alexa R. win the party dress competition and take home a pumpkin-shaped trophy. Fans of other books in the series will know that Marya has clashed with Alexa in the past. So when Marya's school announces a prize for selling the most tickets to the fall festival, Marya knows she has to win. And she begins to plan Operation Sell Tickets. But then, of course, so does Alexa. Eventually, however, both girls realize that maybe--just maybe--things will go more smoothly if they cooperate. While the outcome's a tad predictable, there's a lot of action, making for a delightful, sweet read. Over the course of this chapter book, Marya does some growing up and learns a few lessons. Her relationships with others ring true, from her older siblings (with whom she often bickers), to her beloved grandmother, to her classmates. Marya and her family are Pakistani American and Muslim, while Alexa presents white. A recipe for pumpkin spice cookies closes out the book. Crisp and vibrant, just like a perfect fall day. (Chapter book. 6-9) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
