Review by Booklist Review
Raschka draws on his inner teen and grownup as well as his inner child for this wry tale of a town whose values and customs are threatened by a ruthless real-estate developer. The last member of the Jumpers, a celibate Shaker-like commune whose members substituted jumping rope for sex (or, as they called it, "canoodling"), has sold her estate just outside the Pennsylvania town of Fourwords. Enter the aptly named Major Gasbag, a sneering wheeler-dealer who fences off the grounds and pond the villagers had always been free to use in order to build a private country club. The strength of smalltown stories like this is nearly always in the cast, and here the author ropes in a lively one, pitting Gasbag against 12-year-old summer visitor Peachaloo Piccolozampa at the head of a supporting group that ranges from her indomitable grandmother Helena to a mysterious pair of bank robbers disguised as men. The plot is enriched by jump-rope rhymes, a climactic natural disaster, and enough meticulously detailed rehearsal and performance scenes for a town play to satisfy the most rabid young thespians. Still, it's Peachaloo--able to hear what people really mean underneath what they say--who really owns this beguiling story, and who is left at the end floating in the restored pond, thinking big thoughts. Fourwords' small-town characters and character come alive in the frequent black-and-white sketches.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Optimistic 12-year-old Peachaloo Piccolozampa, who has "uneven legs," is enjoying summer break with her town historian grandmother in rural Appalachian Fourwords, Pa., when she learns that the beloved local swimming hole and woods are to be torn down and replaced with a golf course. She also finds that a wasp's sting has endowed her with the power, dubbed Extra Wasp Perception, to discern the truth behind peoples' lies. As Peachaloo participates in various seasonal activities--including garneringa starring role in Fourwords's annual pageant celebrating a thwarted historical bank robbery--she and her feisty grandmother face off against scheming newcomer Major Gasbag, whose plot to construct an opulent resort contradicts the wishes of the enigmatic organization that previously owned the property. But the signed testament to that deal is missing, so Peachaloo uses her EWP to crack the case. Rambling omniscient narration from an observant, good-humored townsperson imparts a cozy atmosphere, as well as occasionally and straightforwardly detailing ableist commentary from Peachaloo's peers. Loose blackline illustrations by Caldecott Medalist Raschka depict the eclectic small-town cast with fluid forms; the protagonists' skin tones echo the white of the page. Ages 10--up. Agent: Brenda Bowen, Book Group. (July)
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Review by Horn Book Review
Twelve-year-old Peachaloo Piccolozampa is staying with her beloved grandmother Omi in small-town Pennsylvania for the summer, as usual. This year their idyllic life, characterized by early-morning swims in the local pond, is threatened by villainous real estate developer Major Gasbag. (Gasbag speaks exclusively in hyperbole; timely parallel noted.) The story (which has a mysterious first-person narrator, eventually revealed) continues in this satirical vein as Peachaloo and Omi attempt to resist Gasbag's machinations. Entwining with this plot line is a historical story of two 1930s bank robbers who experienced a conversion from their life of crime due to an encounter with a local religious sect, a society that treated skipping as a spiritual practice. (The use of skipping as a form of social protest may be a sweet nod to Eleanor Farjeon's classic, Elsie Piddock Skips in Her Sleep.) Peachaloo stars in the town's annual play devoted to this inspiring event. It all adds up to a rollicking, digressive, and (unsurprisingly given Raschka's work as an illustrator) highly visually descriptive novel. "Ship-like clouds were burnt a fiery scarlet on their undersides, with their fluffy topsides going lilac." In a dramatic conclusion, Gasbag is ejected from paradise, Peachaloo gains confidence, and order is restored in proper comic fashion. Sarah EllisJuly/August 2025 p.104 (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A quick-witted preteen challenges a country club tycoon while visiting her grandmother's peculiar hometown. After inquisitive 12-year-old Peachaloo Piccolozampa is stung by a wasp at her grandmother Helena's favorite swimming spot in Fourwords, Pennsylvania, she acquires EWP--extra wasp perception--which allows her to understand the real meaning behind people's words. Peachaloo applies her new skill when Major Gasbag and Georgie, his grandson, arrive in town after purchasing the historical Ajax Mansion, which once belonged to a community of rope-jumping craftspeople and artisans with a love of nature and no use for luxury. Major Gasbag plans to fence off the forest and other natural resources around the mansion, including Helena's swimming hole, and build a country club accessible only to wealthy townspeople. In this quirky and whimsically narrated small-town story, Helena, Peachaloo, and best friend Lily protest Major Gasbag's plans, all while preparing for the annual end-of-summer pageant. Simple, stylized line illustrations accompany the text, bringing the town of Fourwords to life. Humor joins clever dialogue and an engaging plot that will sweep readers away to a whirlwind ending. Peachaloo limps due to having one leg that's shorter; she takes pride in her physical difference and loves her cane. Main characters are cued white. Lily reports an odd exchange after asking her father, Ira Schwartz, whether their surname, which meansblack, means they have Black ancestry; he says maybe someone in their family was a soot-covered chimney sweep or just black-haired. Eccentricity abounds in this fantastical underdog tale of natural and historical preservation.(Fiction. 10-13) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
