True Things Adult Don't Want Kids to Know is my second favorite Amelia Rules! graphic novel. This volume focuses on the hard transition from a kid to a young adult. In this volume Amelia learns that growing-up isn't very easy. Sometimes promises are broken and sometimes they are kept. Hard work is required in order to achieving your goals. And love...well, love is complicated at any age.
Description (from the Publisher): Meet Amelia Louise McBride. She was forced to move out of Manhattan after her parents decided to get divorced, and is now living in a small town. She’s survived being the new kid, multiple trips to the principal’s office, and even her first kiss. But it remains to be seen if she’ll survive turning eleven!
The sixth volume starts with a bang: a huge birthday party featuring surprise guests and a special song from Aunt Tanner! It all seems too good to be true, until it turns out . . . it is. Suddenly, Amelia’s friends are fighting all the time. She gets the worst report card of her life. And when she finally musters the guts to tell a certain boy how she feels about him, she brutally learns why it’s called a “crush.” Aunt Tanner would know just what to do—if she were around. But with her new album and maybe a new boyfriend, she doesn’t seem to have time for Amelia anymore.
There are some tough lessons to learn when you’re eleven, and things may not always turn out as planned. But who says that has to be a bad thing?
Review: In this volume, Amelia McBride has to face some sad goodbyes, some difficult decisions, and her 11th birthday. Luckily she has an amazing cast of friends and family by her side through all the hilarious and heartwarming trials of life. Compared to the other graphic novels in this series, this one is more mature.
One of the main subplots in this volume involves Amelia's popular and fun Aunt Tanner. Tanner was a rising musician who suddenly stopped making music. When Aunt Tanner writes and sings a special song for Amelia's birthday, her passion for music rekindles. Unfortunately, Tanner also realizes that music companies aren't really interested in her anymore and it breaks her heart. Having faith and confidence in her aunt, Amelia with some help of her techie friends start spreading the news about Tanner and releasing her songs on the Internet. The news and Tanner's popularity spreads and also a music tour is very likely to occur.
In addition to Tanner's music endeavors there is also a budding romance between her beloved teacher and her Aunt Tanner, causing her aunt to be a bit absent just when Amelia needs her help in dealing with her own painful and sometime embarrassing first real crush. You can see Amelia's frustration and stress rising as she desperately seeks to get advice from somewhere. Luckily, she lets her aunt and mom know she needs help rather than dealing with her problems on her own.
Amelia is growing up and it is evident in how she is becoming more self-aware and responsible while still maintaining her tween personality. Amelia is starting to realize that while she can have several people support her, she is ultimately responsible for making her own decisions. Even her playtime is changing, transitioning from clubhouses and dressing up as superheroes to Truth or Dare and trips to the mall. Gownley gets this transition and it feels natural. The art maintains the simple bright charm of the previous volumes of the graphic-novel series, and the cartoon-style drawings with strong child appeal are a perfect match for the humor and emotion of the story lines. With some parts laugh-out-loud funny and some heart-wrenching, this book has something for everyone.
Rating: 4 stars
Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 4-6
If you like this book try: Ariol: Just a Donkey Like You and Me by Emmanuel Guibert,
Big Nate by Lincoln Peirce,
Amelia Rules! Her Permanent Record by Jim Gownley
