The Recess Genius 2: Tons of Talent

by Janet Sumner Johnson, Stacy Ebert (Illustrator)

Overview

The Recess Genius is back! There are still tons of tricky problems on the playground, but the upcoming talent show might be just the solution to help with them all.  The second book in the RECESS GENIUS series from the author of HELP WANTED: MUST LOVE BOOKS and the illustrator of HELLO WORLD!

Regina Grey, the Recess Genius, can solve any problem. Brother problems and friend problems. Bug problems and pen problems.

But when no one signs up for the talent show? That problem requires some extra thought. And there are other issues that need Regina’s special skill set and attention.

Still, sometimes one simple answer is all the solution you need for the show to go on. After all, the Recess Genius is very talented. 

The second book in The Recess Genius picture book series from the author of HELP WANTED: MUST LOVE BOOKS and the illustrator of HELLO, WORLD! charms with funny, warm celebration of out-of-the-box thinking and an unforgettable heroine sure to solve any reading dilemma.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781645951421
Publisher:	Holiday House
Publication date:	05/07/2024
Series:	The Recess Genius , #2
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
File size:	29 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Janet Sumner Johnson is the author of Help Wanted, Must Love Books, which was the winner of the 2021 CLEL Bell Picture Book Award and was nominated for the Washington and Colorado Children’s Book Awards. She lives in northern Utah with her husband, three kids, and a dog. As a kid, she learned to distinguish good advice from bad, after following her big sister's suggestion to cut her own bangs. When she’s not writing, Janet loves eating cookies, laughing, and going on long walks. You can learn more about her and her books at www.janetsumnerjohnson.com.

Stacy Ebert is the illustrator of Hello World! by Kelly Corrigan and How to Build a Story . . . or, the Big What If by Frances O’Roark Dowell. Stacy’s background is in communication art and design and elementary education. She lives in Minnesota with her husband and three sons, where she is excellent at disappearing into books. Visit Stacy online at www.stacyebert.com.

Editorial Reviews

"Give to readers who are not quite ready for Junie B. Jones and her antics."—School Library Journal

"Regina and her classmates show tons of personality."—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

06/01/2024

Gr 1–2—The Recess Genius is back in a new picture book for emerging readers. Regina Grey, aka the Recess Genius, is the resident problem-solver of her school. No problem is too big or small. When Regina is asked to solve a problem involving the lack of sign-ups for the school talent show, she employs her amusing abilities to take on the big picture as well as the students' smaller ones. The result is not exactly what she'd anticipated, but Regina does find a way to make everyone, including careful readers, happy. The font used here is small, but the repeated use of the same words, designed to give confidence to beginning readers, will keep children on track. The cartoon-style artwork has a sort of doodled vibe but is in full support of the story. VERDICT Give to readers who are not quite ready for Junie B. Jones and her antics. —Maria Graybosch

School Library Journal

2024-02-03
Regina the Recess Genius is solving her classmates’ problems again, this time in one fell swoop.

It takes a lot of thinking to puzzle out the solution to Aimee’s problem. Aimee is planning a talent show, but no one has signed up. Several other kids come to Regina with their troubles: Kennedy feels overshadowed by attention-grabbing Bella, James doesn’t know how to tell his soccer teammates that he also takes ballet, and Michael frets about being able to make it to a far-off bathroom. Regina decides that the talent show can solve everyone’s issues. The prizes are just what her classmates need: recognition, money (so James can buy his teammates a new ball), and the “Hall Pass of Hall Passes.” But while Aimee’s show is a rousing success for her, the prizes end up with the wrong students. That’s when Regina’s talent kicks in. Michael’s problem seems like one an adult should be involved in solving, and buying his teammates’ affection hardly seems like the ideal solution to James’ issue. Still, the Recess Genius isn’t portrayed as the introvert bookworm she was in the first book; instead, she takes a far more active role. In the cartoon images, Regina and her classmates show tons of personality. Regina, Bella, and Kennedy present white, James and Aimee are brown-skinned, and Michael appears Asian.

A more satisfying outing for our hero than her previous one. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews