Zibby Payne & the Party Problem

Zibby Payne #3

by Alison Bell

(ages 8 - 10) Everyone's favorite Total Tomboy is back, with more over-the-top plans to save the day! Zibby can't believe her "friends" Amber and Savannah are turning their birthday bashes into exclusive events by handing out special party privileges to a select few. Always one to express her opinion loud and clear Zibby protests by having her own shindig, which will of course be The Best Party Ever. She comes up with a Totally Fair & Equal "A party for all, and all for the party!" But can Zibby really invite everyone? Even the boys? Zibby's open invitation policy lands her in one tricky party predicament!

92 pages, Paperback

First published May 15, 2008

About the author

I am a freelance magazine writer and author of 10 non-fiction books for teens and pre-teens on a wide variety of topics from fashion to parties to handwriting analysis. But my real love is writing fiction, and my first fiction book for kids was published in the fall of 2006, Zibby Payne & the Wonderful, Terrible Tomboy Experiment (Lobster Press), based on the antics of my own daughter. The second in the series is due out in the spring of 2007, Zibby Payne & The Drama Trauma. The series, for children ages 7 - 10, features a spunky, feisty little girl who remains true to herself -- sometimes, well, all the time, with comic results! I am currently working on a new series based on my 6-year-old son.

Reviews

[Lara Vehar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a surprisingly good story. The premise is simple - Zibby is invited to two parties but she doesn't like that some people get excluded from special treatment - the first party girl giving out coupons and gifting t-shirts to some friends but not the others, and the second one inviting some friends to come home with her and sleep over and the others not. So Zibby decides to have a party that invites everyone and doesn't exclude anyone. She doesn't want help from two outcasts that she invites thinking that she can throw the perect party on her own but she learns that she does need help and that sometimes something that may seem childish to you can be a big hit and can do wonders.

It's a short story but I enjoyed it a lot, I also love that Zibby is just the right character - not too grown up or grumpy teenager but also not childish.

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Allison Fraclose for TeensReadToo.com

Zibby Payne has been invited to a lot of parties lately, and she's noticed a significant problem: someone always gets left out. Whether it's a coupon for a "Special Party Prize for Special Friends," or secret sleepovers because only so many girls are allowed, Zibby is tired of the inequality, and makes up her mind to throw The Most Inclusive Party on the Planet.

"A party for all, and all for the party!"

But even when Zibby thinks that she gets everyone on the invite list, she realizes that she's still not living up to her own declaration. Guilt persuades her to invite Vanessa and Franny, the two class losers. And what about the boys? Zibby can't leave out her soccer friends, can she? Suddenly, the guest list leaps from 24 to 34, and Vanessa and Franny are so intent on helping plan the party that they just might ruin everything. Will this party idea turn out to be Zibby's Worst Idea Ever?

Of the Zibby books, I found this one to be my favorite. Zibby's insistence on equality and inclusion for all is refreshing in an age where most social groups are anything but equal and inclusive. The problems she encounters by trying to break the unspoken social taboos of her circle are real, as are the solutions that arise. Very nicely done!