MIDDLE SCHOOL IS NO GAME

Middle school is all about change. Alexandra Alessandri has written a coming of age story that blends several themes; navigating middle school, changing friendships, peer pressure, hispanic culture, soccer, and art. When Cami returns home to Miami after her summer visiting relatives in Columbia, she is no longer the BFF that Luchy recalls. The girls are about to start sixth grade, and according to Cami, Middle school is all about change. She is interested in makeup, boys and fitting in. Lucy is in no hurry to grow up and feels abandoned by her best friend who is now ignoring her. the author has done a fantastic job of portraying a young girl who doesn't feel enough. - Not hispanic enough, because she doesn't speak Spanish; not good enough on the soccer field for her Dad, not grown up enough for her own best friend. I enjoyed the balance of Spanish from the grandmother and translation or explanation through dialogue or context. When the story ends and issues are resolved, life lessons are learned. However, like life, things are not tied up in a neat bow and Luchy still has changes ahead of her.

I recommend this great book for any middle school student.

This was a bittersweet read of a friendship in turmoil. Grow Up, Luchy Zapata did an amazing job showing the difficulties of navigating friendships during the emotionally charged atmosphere that is middle school. I think readers can learn a lot from and sympathize with both Luchy and Cami.

At times Luchy lacked what is key in an important relationship - communication. However, by the end, readers will be able to see what makes a truly good friend by the choices Luchy makes. I liked how even if Luchy was feuding with Cami she was there for Mateo during a difficult time. Luchy wasn't perfect but was always trying to be a good friend to one of her best friends.

One of the elements I enjoyed the most throughout this story was Luchy's grandmother's cooking. So many wonderful descriptions of Latin food that made me so hungry! There was even talk about Cuban food which I particularly enjoyed. I've recently discovered a love of passionfruit pie and ice cream so reading how Luchy would drink her abuela's passionfruit juice after school made me smile. I also appreciated how easily accessible this story was with Spanish being translated into English so smoothly.

Art and soccer were a big part of the story. Art helped Luchy want to explore more of her Colombian identity which she felt detached from because she isn't fluent in Spanish. While the soccer field provided a lot of frustration at first but ultimately led to peaceful resolutions.

There has been a new trend with middle-grade soccer books coming out recently with the titles Select by Christie Matheson, The Beautiful Game by Yamile Saied Méndez, Crushing It by Erin Becker, and The Soccer Diaries by Tom Palmer. Whatever the case for the trend I'm glad it brought me to this book. Grow Up, Luchy Zapata is a wonderful coming-of-age story where friendship, Colombian culture, and soccer take center stage.

Thanks to NetGalley & Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for providing me a copy of Grow Up, Luchy Zapata in exchange for an honest review. (Release Date: July 23rd, 2024)

Luchy is looking forward to starting middle school with her best buddies Cami and Mateo. Cami has been away for the summer in her native Colombia and when she returns just before school starts, Luchy notices some subtle changes in her friend, who seems more grown up than before. The gap between them only widens when school starts and Cami begins hanging out with Melissa, who doesn’t seem to like Luchy very much. When it’s time to try out for the school’s soccer team, Luchy’s cleats go missing, leading to an escalating series of pranks between the two that puts the future of their friendship in doubt.

The author beautifully captures the ups and downs of the challenging transition to middle school and the navigation of the changing friendships that often takes place. Elements of Luchy and Cami’s Colombian culture are seamlessly woven in and add depth to the story. Many readers will make connections with this book and find comfort in its pages as they follow Luchy’s journey.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sharing an eARC of the book with me.

Where to start with GROW UP, LUCHY ZAPATA. It hit me in the heart that's for sure. The interactions between this trio of best friends really captures the drama and stakes of being a pre-teen. LUCHY also doesn’t have a strictly neat ending which I loved. Life isn’t like that and the ambiguity and uncertainty of life is something kids begin to understand and internalize at the age of the three main characters. This book flowed so well and had me turning pages until it was done and I wondered what would happen next! I think kids from 4th grade and up will enjoy this one!

What a fun emotional roller coaster of a story. I read this book after finishing a book and discussions all about kids and emotions, so I think I was extra in tune to the characters and their emotions and what was fueling them. Which was fun because there is so much tween emotion going on in Grow up, Luchy Zapata. And it is so relatable. The middle school years are such a time of uncertainty and change and development for so many youth. I really love that you are able to see the good, the bad and the ugly in Luchy. That even though the story is told from her point of view it feels like an honest and real version of what it is like, not just justifying all that she does. I love the culture that is tied in throughout the story. That we get to learn a bit about her Columbian roots through her initial distaste for the culture and everchanging feelings about it. While this book is especially relevant for kids experiencing the stress of middle school, it could be enjoyed by someone feeling great in school or someone well past the middle school years. I look forward to reading more by Alessandri.

I enjoyed this!
The author was very spot-on with details of middle-school life and drama. The setting was modern day Miami, with its population of Latin American residents.
Luchy Zapata, (not Lucy!) has been looking forward to starting sixth grade with her best friends Mateo and Cami. Cami has always attended a private school, so Luchy can’t wait to start this new chapter in their lives together! When Cami returns from her summer trip to Columbia, Luchy is surprised at the changes in her best friend after only three months. Cami seems so much more grown-up, so much more “Colombian” than before. Luchy senses a distance between them, but is not sure how to approach it. At school, Cami takes up with a girl named Melissa, who seems to have a grudge with Luchy from their first meeting. Being on the soccer team together should have helped, with the Coach’s emphasis on the importance of playing as a unit, but further problems arise when Luchy’s soccer cleats mysteriously disappear right before the first match. And the situation escalates rapidly from that point on…
I was very impressed at the way the author handled the Spanish dialogue, which was vital to the story. A character would speak in Spanish, and an English translation would be then be spoken/explained by another character. This greatly contributed to the flow of the story; more helpful than a glossary of Spanish words at the end. In a Kindle format, glossaries are difficult to use, because one can’t flip pages back and forth as easily as in a print book!
*I received a digital copy fro Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.*