I absolutely loved this book. Thea is such a real and relatable middle school protagonist. Her insecurities about her new friends and identity at her new school paired with her intense cringing and guilt in regards to her old best friend Evan resonated with my students when I read the first chapter out loud. I appreciate what a well-rounded protagonist that Thea is. There are things she says and does early on that are frustrating, and it'd be easy for her to come across as an unlikeable character if there wasn't enough depth. The relationship she had with her grandpa and now much she misses him is so poignant and reminds the reader that The a is just a tween trying her best and figuring out what kind of person she wants to be…while goblins might be about to destroy the world because of her.

I loved learning about duwendes (and how they appear in more than just Filipino folklore!). This is a great amount of fantasy for kids who aren’t sure how they feel about the genre. So much is rooted in the real world/a world the reader recognizes.

Also, after I did my read of the first.chapter, there were multiple students who were so excited that I said the word “duwende,” and one student even asked me to show the book to their parents. It’s so wonderful to see those kind of experiences and connections with kids, and Tracy Badua does this time and time again in her books.
I’m also a fan of how Badua lays out the elements of a true, meaningful apology/reparations.

I’m grateful for the advanced copy I got from NetGalley, and I’m so glad to have this book in my classroom library.

In Tracy Badua’s THEA AND THE MISCHIEF MAKERS, Thea is attending a Junior Stunt Warrior Camp and struggling more than she’d like to admit with the camp’s challenging obstacles. She’s recently moved to a new school and has found herself part of the cool crowd, so she’s a little disappointed to find her decidedly uncool friend from her old school at the camp with her, worrying that he might damage her newfound reputation. Looking for more practice opportunities to maintain her standing with her new friends, Thea cuts down a tree branch to use in an obstacle course in her own backyard, unknowingly unleashing the fury of Dante and Dora, the duwendes who reside in the tree. The only way to stop the goblins from destroying her town is to sincerely apologize—and they give her a week to figure out how to do that. Thea tries to satisfy the apology requirements on her own, but as the pranks and damage from the duwendes continue to escalate, eventually she needs to draw Evan in for assistance, causing her to reconsider her feelings about their friendship.

As Thea struggles to balance maintaining her sporty image with her new friends, hiding her fear of some of the stunts at camp, and solving the duwende problem, she’s forced to consider both what it means to be herself and what kind of person she wants to be, even if that means sacrificing being seen as cool. Filipino folklore, friendship, and forgiveness merge here in a fast-paced story filled with humor and adventure.

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

What a delightful book! I absolutely loved the overall message of the book and the lessons that Thea learned throughout the book. Middle school is a challenging time, and navigating who you are and who you are going to be is a very relatable topic for upper elementary and middle school students. The Filipino magical duwendes and their mischief was a such a fun addition, and I loved how the author had the duwendes learn lessons along the way too!
Highly recommend for students ages 8-12!

Thea and the Mischief Makers should be required reading for all middle grade readers. It's a story that is universal in its exploration of friendship. For these middle grade readers, and for anyone going through a change, we aren't sure how to balance these new friends. What kind of person do we want to be and how do we treat the ones around us? When we change, go to a new school, make a different decision, we have the opportunity to decide what kind of friend and what kind of person we are. Thea and the Mischief Makers is about exactly that.

I’m a huge fan of all of Badua’s middle grades and this latest fits perfect into her catalog of fun contemporary fantasy that draw heavily from Filipino folklore. Fast paced and action packed, this book will please a wide variety of readers. Highly recommend!

A perfect middle grade for those looking for contemporary adventure plots!

I think this could appeal to kids who enjoy the outdoors, sports, but need something appealing to read. It's very straightforward and enjoyable.