From author of the commercial hit Maybe A Mermaid comes a middle-grade adventure about heroics in the face of grief.
Even though her family moved across the country for a “fresh start” after her little brother’s death, eleven-year-old Zinnia still feels like she’s stuck waiting for her new life to begin. Then she spots her new neighbor, Kris, climbing down the fire escape of their apartment building. He’s wearing a black eye mask! And Spandex leggings. . . . And a blue body suit?
Soon Zinnia finds herself in a secret club for kids who want to be heroes. The Reality Shifters don’t have superpowers, but they do have the power to make positive change in their neighborhoods. And a change is just what Zinnia is looking for!
At first, she feels invincible. Zinnia finally has friends and is on the kind of real-life adventures her little brother, Wally, would have loved. But when her teammates lose sight of their goals, Zinnia must find the balance between bravery and recklessness, and learn to be a hero without her cape.Author’s note.
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Sixth grader Zinnia and her young aunt join the Reality Shifters, a league of Real-Life Superheroes who aim to “help the helpless [and] bring hope to the hopeless” through such missions as delivering blankets and water to people experiencing homelessness, while raising awareness with their conspicuous costumes. Quiet Zinnia joins the group largely because her adventurous late brother, over whom she is grieving, would have loved it. The influence of fellow Reality Shifters brings her out of her shell, encouraging assertiveness in her daily life; an episode of standing up to a classmate’s teasing reveals a lot about both characters. The superhero theme, complete with alter egos—rainbow- loving Zinnia is Spectrum, a bold-when-in-costume classmate is Wrecking Ball, a wheelchair-using member is Papa Wheelie—and a rivalry with another RLSH league add a lively element, but the story stays grounded in day-to-day life, encouraging readers to think critically about what allyship means and how to avoid centering oneself. An author’s note gives background on the real-life RLSH movement and advice on both grief and advocacy. SHOSHANA FLAX