The Great Treehouse War

May 8, 2017
In this appealing faux-memoir, 11-year-old Winnie Malladi-Maraj is caught in a tug-of-war between her divorced parents. Unable to find perfect parity as they compete to spend holidays with their daughter, they embark on a ridiculous rash of one-upmanship, celebrating Flag Day, National Slinky Day, and World UFO Day in outlandish, time-consuming ways that leave Winnie more stressed than impressed. She is in danger of failing fifth grade until a project on local history gives her the idea to declare her epic tree house (which includes a loft, mini-fridge, and zip line) to be on sovereign soil so she won’t ever have to come down. When her friends join her, the so-called “Tulip Street Ten” makes national news. Graff (A Clatter of Jars) structures her story as a “collective memoir” that Winnie and her friends put together in hopes of winning a writing contest and avoiding flunking; editorial comments from her friends offering editorial commentary are scattered throughout on sticky notes, along with maps, memos, emails, cartoons, and how-to guides, creating a vibrant patchwork of personalities that gives voice to the power of friendship. Ages 8–12. Agent: Stephen Barbara, Inkwell Management.

March 15, 2017
Hyperbole reigns supreme!Indian-American Winnie's been suffering mightily since her parents' divorce. Neither one will give an inch, so Winnie's days are precisely divided between the warring, very peculiar adults, with the leftover day, Wednesday, spent in her magnificent treehouse. In trying to outdo each other by overcelebrating every conceivable holiday, Winnie's parents consume all of their daughter's time. She's now in grave danger of failing fifth grade. In desperation, she retreats to her treehouse, refusing to come down. Her nine school friends, depicted on the cover as being of varying races, unexpectedly join her there, each with a (trivial) gripe with parents, their strike resulting in instant fame. Due to a legal technicality, the kids can stay, but that doesn't keep the powerless adults from torturing them with loud music and bright spotlights. The third-person tale is presented from Winnie's perspective, interspersed with recipes, instructions for crafts, and, primarily, her friends' Post-it comments. By the 14th day, Winnie's sleep-deprived friends are splintering apart just like her parents did. With guidance from an insightful uncle she finds her voice and helps them all go home, fulfilling not their demands but what each one really needed. Her wayward parents remain unreachable though--until she realizes that she has to apply her determined persistence and dynamic, assertive voice with them too. Over-the-top but ultimately wise. (Fiction. 9-12)

COPYRIGHT(2017) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

April 1, 2017
Gr 3-6-Winnie's mom and dad are getting divorced. They are extremely competitive, both in their careers and their parenting styles, and splitting time with Winnie is no exception. They insist that their custody agreement be divided right down the middle, with each parent getting the exact same amount of time. Winnie will spend three days at her dad's house and three days at her mom's. That leaves Wednesdays, and since Winnie's parents can't split their daughter in half, they decide to build an amazing tree house between their properties. On Wednesdays, Winnie will live there alone. As her parents' competitiveness ramps up, Winnie finds that her Wednesdays are sacred. They're her only break from the custody craziness. When her time there is threatened, Winnie goes on the offensive and stages a tree house standoff. She's not coming out until her parents see her way of thinking, and nine of her closest friends join her with demands of their own. It's kids vs. parents in epic fashion, and Graff's not-quite-fantasy world is every kid's dream. All of the frustrations young people feel with their parents during a divorce are hilariously hyperbolized in a way that will make children feel vindicated and less alone. The epistolary format allows readers to get to know all of the characters through creative footnotes, sticky notes, newspaper articles, emails, and tiny drawings. VERDICT Graff's whimsical, original work is a breath of fresh air. A strong addition to any middle grade collection.-Mandy Laferriere, Fowler Middle School, Frisco, TX

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2017
Grades 3-6 Since Winnie's parents' divorce, they have organized her weeks in an unusual way. She lives with each one for three days, which they turn into competitively elaborate, frantically fun-filled celebrations of pseudo holidays, leaving little time for homework or meaningful conversation. But where does Winnie live on Wednesdays? In an elaborate tree house (Plumbing? Check. Electricity? Check) supported by a sturdy, historic tree between the parents' two backyards. She treasures those days alone, her only time for doodling, relaxing, and school assignments. When she learns that she's failing fifth grade, Winnie retreats to her leafy loft, and soon she and nine classmates, the Treehouse Ten, refuse to come down until their demands are met. Represented as Winnie's last chance to raise her grades, the main narrative is a history project articulately written from her point of view and interspersed with extras such as comments, comics, and craft ideas from the other kids. Their idiosyncrasies and relationships provide subplots as well as humor. Combining over-the-top storytelling with down-home wisdom, this appealing chapter book is easy to booktalk and fun to read.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2017
Sensible fifth grader Winnie Malladi-Maraj has ridiculous parents. In a shared custody situation, her mother and father are both determined to prove themselves the better parent--more conscientious, more involved, more creative. For example, each is determined to outdo the other in celebrations. Windmill Day, Escargot Day, Lumpy Rug Day--the competitive parents curate snacks and activities to the point where Winnie is so overwhelmed and exhausted that she can't even do her homework. To save herself, she moves full-time into the tree house where she'd been living by herself on Wednesdays (also part of the custody agreement, to maximize fairness). Having discovered that the tree was once on the property of a now-defunct European consulate, she further declares herself not on American soil and therefore exempt from parental jurisdiction. Nine classmates with their own family gripes join her. Communal kid-life eventually breaks down, but not before the Treehouse Ten have an extremely good romp. Think zip lines, junk food, and kid power. The narrative is highly textured, a mix of Winnie's record of the adventure, Post-it Note commentary from the other kids, texts, doodles, directions for craft projects, maps, and emails between adults. It's a good-natured satire of helicopter parenting and a celebration of child ingenuity, but mostly it's all about what fun it is to live in a tree. sarah ellis

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2017
Fifth grader Winnie Malladi-Maraj, exhausted by her competitive custody-sharing parents, moves into her treehouse. Nine classmates with their own family gripes join her, and the "Treehouse Ten" have an extremely good romp before communal kid-life eventually breaks down. The highly textured narrative--incorporating Post-it notes, texts, doodles, maps, and more--is a good-natured satire of helicopter parenting and a celebration of child ingenuity.

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)