Mango Delight

Mango Delight #1

by Fracaswell Hyman, Frank Morrison (Illustrator)

“Mango is as delightful as her middle name indicates, and middle-grade readers will easily recognize their own experiences in her friendship struggles.” — Booklist (starred review)

What happens when your BFF becomes your EFF . . . EX-Friend-Forever? When seventh-grader Mango Delight Fuller accidentally breaks her BFF Brooklyn’s new cell phone, her life falls apart. She loses her friends and her spot on the track team, and even costs her father his job as a chef. But Brooklyn’s planned revenge—sneakily signing up Mango to audition for the school musical—backfires when Mango not only wins the lead role, but becomes a YouTube sensation and attracts the attention of the school’s queen bee, Hailey Jo. Hailey Jo is from a VERY wealthy family, and expects everyone to do her bidding. Soon Mango finds herself forced to make tough choices about the kind of friend she wants to have . . . and, just as important, the kind of friend she wants to be .

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Friendship, Fiction, Childrens, Kids, African American

224 pages, Hardcover

First published June 6, 2017

Reviews

[Jasmine from How Useful It Is · Rating 5 out of 5]

About: Mango Delight is a juvenile fiction written by Fracaswell Hyman. It was recently published on 6/6/17 by Sterling Children’s Books, an imprint of Sterling Publishing, 224 pages. The genres are juvenile fiction, middle grade, and social themes. This book is intended for readers ages 9 to 13. This book is the author’s first middle grade novel.

My Experience: I started reading Mango Delight on 6/23/17 and finished it on 6/29/17. This book is a fantastic read! I love the author’s ways with words. There’s attitude, humor, spunk, to the point, and modern all twisted together. I love the author’s writing style. The plot and characters are perfect. If time was on my side, I would have read this book nonstop!

“Remember, my sweet Mango, sometimes when it seems things are falling apart, they are really just falling into place.” p38

In this book, readers will follow the point of view of Mango Delight Fuller aka Mango, a twelve year old middle school student who is outcast by her peers because she doesn’t have a cell phone. Life without a cell phone is less torturous when she has her best friend Brooklyn Minelli to have fun with. They have their cool handshakes, Girl On Track after school program to run together, and both are obsess with Beyoncé. When Mango won the 400 meter sprint, Brooklyn became distant and got herself a new cell phone and involve herself with the popular crowd called Cell-belles. Brooklyn became the Queen of Mean with her texts about Mango’s family to the Cell-belles and even trap Mango to perform onstage knowing Mango has stage fright. Turns out Mango surprised everyone with her awestruck performance. A popular girl in school, Hailey Joanne suddenly become Best Friends By Default with Mango because she posted a video of Mango’s performance on YouTube where it got hundreds of views. Mango has to figure out how to deal with new friendships when she had last trusted a friend and how hurt she got in the end.

“When we get home, we can go through this newspaper together, read all about the troubles in the world, and compare them to yours. How do you think you’ll measure up?” p191

This book is very well written! I love it! I love Mango’s family, especially her dad. He has such wise advices. I love following Mango’s train of thoughts. She is a good role model to other middle grade students. I love those obscure facts from TJ. Izzy is a great friend. I like the hashtags and the modern take to this book. It’s thought provoking as a parent to think about how cell phone is running all of our lives. It’s a tough decision to make whether how young a kid should have a cell phone. This book has me laughing and crying. It’s a total package and I highly recommend everyone to read this book!

Pro: friendship, family dynamic, humor, fast paced, page turner, diversity, identity

Con: none

I rate it 5 stars!

***Disclaimer: I won this book in a Twitter giveaway and my opinions are honest.

xoxo,
Jasmine at www.howusefulitis.wordpress.com for a detailed review

[Dee Dee G · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t believe how much my almost 45 year old self was caught up in this book lol. Such a great book about honesty and telling the truth. Another wonderful book with life lessons in it.

[Sara Glenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Mango Delight Fuller really is a delight. I enjoyed this story of her coming into her own and discovering the type of friend she wants to have and be. It was a little on the shallow end for me-a lot of cell phone, emoji, slang, and girl/boy crush/relationship talk. May be more middle school due to focus her first crush. I do love that main character is an African-American girl and that the author wrote this debut novel because she was tired of not seeing book with characters who look like her daughter on the cover. Hope to see more from her!

[Wills Maxwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book with great characters. I wish this book existed when I was a kid.

[Bookworman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book. I loved Mango and her wonderful family, espcially her dad and his wise sayings. The story was funny and sweet but also dealt with preteen and teenaged angst. Couldn't quite buy into the ending though... After Hailey JoAnne's (behavior at the beginning of the book, why would Mango ended up friends with her?. Another great read thanks to Dee Dee G! :-)

[Kevin O'connor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book!
Debut middle grade novel from a great tv writer. So fast and fun!

[Jill F. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book for fifth grade girls about to enter middle school drama.

[gilliana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
It was a bit slow but it was a nice palette cleanser and it was fun to read about this 13 year old girls life (most of it was relatable which was nice) also I learned lots of new weird facts. So it wasn’t an AMAZING book but it was still nice

[Charity Harvey · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great middle grade novel! I am currently going through the books nominated for an SC book award in 2019, and this was on the list. When I first read the title, I saw that MANGO DELIGHT was back ordered and thought "ok, must be pretty popular." When it finally came in and I read the description, I was wondering if I would like it. I actually loved this book! I highly recommend, but let me get into some details.

This book focuses on Mango as she deals with bullying, friendships, first crush, baby brother, finding new hobbies and more. Mango had a lot to deal with, and this short book covered a lot, and I think the author did a great job. At first, Mango is best friends with Brooke. They are a united front at school because they are the only two without a cell phone. However, as soon as Brooke gets shown up at a track practice, her dad buys her a phone to make her feel better. Brooke then ignores Mango, essentially turns on her completely and starts saying nasty things about her. When Mango happens to see the texts sent, and then accidentally drops the phone in water, she's in a big trouble. Things escalate from there, and she's isolated and bullied. However, everything backfires on Brooke when she signs up Mango to audition for a musical. Mango ends up getting the lead role, and suddenly everyone is giving her all the attention. Now Mango has a LOT to deal with.

My classic go to, listing pros and cons.

Pros: 1) Mango has to deal with some very serious bullying, and unfairness from adults as well. She handles it like a champ, and I like that we have a child narrator who is mature for her age. I don't see it often in middle grade novels, and it was refreshing. Not every 12 year old is all bad jokes and emojis.
2) This book deals with/addresses dealing with guilt, on a child's level and an adults. It also deals with being an amputee, and how to keep moving on in life over a physical loss. These can be some heavy subjects, but I think it was handled beautifully.
3)Fast pacing. We cover a lot of ground in the book! We see Mango go through rehearsals for the play, develop a crush on the boy playing Romeo, and perform the show. I'm glad we saw so much!
4) Mango's father is fired over the phone incident, because he stands up for Mango. Her parents are completely honest with her and tell her the truth. YAY for parents not babying the main character/lying/covering it up. They tell her the flat out truth, then let her know it's not her fault what-so-ever, and that they are going to take care of everything. Which, in my opinion, is how it should be. Parents being great parents in fiction, I love it. They let Mango know what was going on, let her cry, and then made sure she felt safe. Also, this shows child readers that adults can be bullies too. Is it sad? Yes, but it's real life. Unfortunately, just because someone grows up, doesn't mean they will stop being a bully. I've met some adult bullies, and sometimes you gotta stand up for yourself, even if the consequences are greater (such as losing your job). I'm telling you, this book handles some serious stuff!!!

Cons: 1) Some things were just "too convenient" for me. Mango is signed up to audition as a joke, everyone expecting her to do poorly, and she sings a Beyonce song. A BEYONCE song, perfectly, and lands the lead role. This falls into that classic trope of hidden talent no one new about and just shows up when needed. I honestly didn't like that; it's too perfect. What if it had been a bit more realistic. Maybe she didn't sing a Beyonce song, but something more appropriate for her age and got the lead role. Or maybe she didn't get the lead; she just did ok and got a role in the play. I'd like to see something like that.
2) Some major bullying was never addressed. Brooke said something completely unacceptable and Mango never tells an adult and she's never punished. Instead, Brooke just transfers to a different school and we never see her again. (which also bothered me. No resolution, and it was shocking that the friendship ended so quickly). Spoiler alert: click here if you want to know right now what Brooke said: Mango's mother is an amputee and has one false leg. Brooke texts someone saying "mango couldn't win a race against her peg-legged mother". Made me so angry even though it is fiction. Made me sick because kids actually do things like this. And no adult is ever told. That really bothered me. It was so much for Mango to handle, and no adult helped her through that.
3) Toward the end, Mango makes maybe some not so good choices and gets blamed for everything. She apologizes, BUT in my opinion Mango was owed a whole lot of apologies that never happened. Bizarre to me that Mango, who is a good child btw, should be made to feel so guilty, but those around her who have used her never have to apologize. Click the spoiler if you want to know now: Hailey Jo is the one that was texting with Brooke about the peg-leg comment. She also said VERY nasty things to Mango at the beginning of the novel. But when Mango becomes popular, she wants to be best friends. Mango does use Hailey Jo's friendship to gain something, and once she admits to it, Hailey Jo is furious. They do make up at the end BUT I WAS UPSET THAT HAILEY JO NEVER APOLOGIZED. WHY MAKE MANGO APOLOGIZE???? BEYOND UNFAIR. Hailey Jo never, not once, said she was sorry for anything. SHE BOUGHT FORGIVENESS WITH GIFTS. That is not real friendship, and it is not apologizing for the bullying she started. Mango should have made that clear from the get go. THEN I would have been ok with her having to apologize. But the way it ended, it was completely unfair.)

So, even though I thought some of the justice in this bullying story was not fair, it's still a great book. There is such a wonderful moment between Mango and her Mom, when she tells Mango the story of how she lost her leg. I will not spoil it at all, you need to read it, I cried. Highly recommend this sweet book!

[Nicole Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

My friend’s ten-year-old daughter lent me this book. Boy am I glad she did! The themes of friendship and the challenges and joys that come along with that are masterfully woven into this novel. Hyman talked about how her daughter wanted to see more stories that reflect the world she and her friends live in – so she decided to write one. Very cool.

Favorite Quotes
• “Remember, my sweet Mango, sometimes when it seems things are falling apart, they are really just falling into place.” (p38)
• “You and I are so much alike. Sometimes it causes lots of problems, but there are times, like now, when it helps me to understand how you feel.” (p47)
• “Anyway, she used to tell me, ‘Isabel, one day you’ll be struck by the lightning bolt of fate and bang! You will know your destiny. Pay attention to that lightning bolt. Follow it to the end of the rainbow, or for the rest of your life, your pockets will be so full of regret that there’ll be no room for money.’” (p72)
• This afternoon had been like a dream. Actually, it had been more like a nightmare that took a sharp left on Luck Street and turned out incredible. (p72)
• “You know, sweet one, fear can be a speed bump, a hill, or a mountain if you let it. But remember, any mountain can be climbed one step at a time.” (p85)
• As we headed down to the basement, I asked for a tea so everyone would think I was rehearsing my songs, even though I really had no idea how to start and was too ashamed to ask for help. (p103)
• Unsure of what to say, I flexed my cheek muscles into something resembling a smile and nodded. (p112)
• That made me think. Was it really my first kiss? Or was it my character Juliet’s first kiss? Or both? (p141)
• “If I did something wrong, just say it. Get it out so I can apologize and we can more on.” (p161)
• I thought I had a good reason to do the things I did, but that didn’t make it right. (p165)
• “Maybe--just maybe--you need this time to think about things and see yourself without distractions.” (p190)
• But even though I was busy with all my personal drama, the world didn’t stop. Flowers bloomed, bees pollinated, and baby birds hatched. Regardless of how down I felt, the world kept moving onward and upward. The realization made me smile. Nothing could stop what was meant to be. The only thing standing in my way was me. (p190-191)
• “Family love you whether you’re on top of the hill or deep in the valley. Unconditional. That is the only kind of love that counts.” (p191)
• “I’m not grateful for the negative.”
“Why not? Without the bad, you wouldn’t appreciate the good. You’d probably be bored to death. Life without conflict, challenges, or pain is dull, like food with no spice--bland, unsatisfying, a waste for de tast, mon.” He laughed at his silly rhyme, and it was contagious. (p192)
• “Okay. Helen Keller could see you don’t want to talk about it, and I’m not the kind of friend how pries into people’s business.” (p193)
• While I waited for my entrance cue, I took some deep breaths and told myself to calm down and concentrate on the play. I was Juliet, a pop superstar, confident and talented and on the way to the greatest adventure of her life. I realized for the first time that it was nice to have a character to escape into, to hide behind, when things in your real life got tough. (p194)
• What would I say? This was the moment of truth, so to speak. If I made up some excuse, I would have to carry it around and pretend it was the truth forever. That’s a huge burden.
• **Grilled cheese sandwich: four slices of cheese, a few leaves of arugula between them. Thin sliced tomatoes. Butter INSIDE of bread. Spread mayonnaise on the outside (that makes the bread golden brown and gives it the perfect crunch). Put the sandwich in a hot pan and use another pan to smash it down really good and cook both sides until the cheese was melted to the point that it started to squish out from the bread. (p199)
• We were like race horses at the gate ready to run; we were anxious to perform for an audience but had to give the crew time to perfect their part of the show. (p203)
• “Hey, listen, sometimes we all do stupid things for the right reasons. That’s just life. It’s not too late to make up for it. I mean, you’re still breathing, right?” (p206)
• I looked at my reflection and smiled. If I had to go through all of what I went through to get to this moment again, I believed I would. I truly would, because everything that happened led me to this place--all the tears, worry, laughs, and drama--everything was worth it. (p216)
• AUTHORS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: Every project I’ve created began as a misty image that lead to a journey through the unknown. Along the way, like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, I’ve come in contact with folks who have helped and inspired me.

[Mariah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somewhat minor spoilers throughout. Read at your own risk.

I generally speaking am fairly forgiving when it comes to middle grade though I can admit my standards are high and it does not always seem like it. I was fully prepared to let Mango Delight slide by mostly unscathed. Unfortunately, the conclusion of the main plot thread sealed its fate.

As per the synopsis, Mango has a falling out with her best friend Brooklyn. When she gets the lead in the upcoming musical she catches the eye of popular mean girl Hailey Joanne. Now she’s caught in Hailey Joanne’s web as she navigates this new phase in her life.

The twist is that Hailey Joanne turns out to genuinely like Mango. She feels like she can be herself around her because Mango is different from the ‘cell-belles’ (the name for the group of girls who have cell phones and choose to bully those who don’t) and actively wants to be her friend. Mango is the untrustworthy one because she is secretly using Hailey Joanne to help her Dad keep his job as a caterer at her birthday party.

This is a perfectly acceptable, common source of conflict in a story. Hailey Joanne not being as bad as Mango first thought is a fun twist of irony considering how much she and Brooklyn seem to hate her in the beginning. Don’t judge a book is a decent message I can get behind.

However, the problem here is that in order to do this plot the book completely ignores that Hailey Joanne is mean.

It would be one thing if Hailey Joanne is mean yet realizes over time that she’s in the wrong, doesn’t want to be that girl any more and/or it is revealed Brooklyn started the beef first so Hailey Joanne was simply returning the favor. This rationale would simply be a facet of her character arc.

Instead, Hailey Joanne is just removed from situations in which she could be mean so it can be hand-waved away whether or not she still is. Hailey Joanne is rude not only directly to Mango, she privately talked behind her back via text as well. It’s not just Mango either. Hailey Joanne is presented as a generic mean girl. She can have layers, but that in no way absolves her of her actions. She tells Mango that she feels pressure to be mean because the cell-belles all look to her except there are never any details provided about how her little group got started. Why would the cell-belles automatically be mean unless Hailey Joanne started it off that way?

I’m fine if Hailey Joanne feels the need to be mean to maintain her status. Again, that would be a natural part of her arc: learning to let go of her need for validation from faceless others because she has an authentic friendship in her life now. But, as the story progresses Hailey Joanne is distant from her cell-belles with no explanation, no apology, and no final stand where she makes it clear she is no longer going to participate in their nastiness.

Mango even acts like Hailey Joanne was just standoffish or intense or something instead of actively rude to her. She feels guilty over deceiving her - which don’t get me wrong she should feel bad - but it’s framed as if Mango is tricking someone who has never hurt a fly when that is absolutely not the case. It was especially weird given the fact Mango was (rightfully) furious at Brooklyn for making fun of her mother for only have one leg yet lets the fact that Hailey Joanne was facilitating that conversation go unaddressed. How can you form a relationship with a girl who would laugh at a nasty joke about your mother like that? Mango acts like Brooklyn was texting herself and doesn't seem to remember at all as the book unfolds that Hailey Joanne was in that text thread.

It was odd since it’s a total slam dunk as far as character development goes. Plus, I was left wondering most of the latter half of the book, if Hailey Joanne was nice now overall or if she had merely warmed to Mango as her special exception.

Brooklyn utterly disappears from the book. After the break-up she transfers schools never to be heard from again. I assume she’s going to appear in a sequel as this is part of a trilogy. Regardless, it was an abrupt revelation that undercut Mango learning her lesson about true friendship. It felt like when a character suddenly goes to live with a relative the audience has never heard of in the middle of a season because the actor behaved badly in real life.

The rest of the book was your run of the mill middle grade fare. Without the friendship failings I would still not have actively recommended Mango Delight, however, I would not have waved you off either. But, as a result of how it failed to stick the landing I’d say give it a pass. There are better friendship break-up books out there.

If you want two that handle the subject exceptionally I would recommend Serena Says by Tanita S. Davis and Squad Goals by Erica J. Kendrick.

[Tonja Drecker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book hits the life of a twelve-year-old girl square on, letting friendship, betrayal, jealousy, first love and all other curves of life's roller coaster fly free in a lovely tale with a delightful girl.

Mango and her BFF, Brooklyn, are inseparable and fated to be. . .or so Mango believes. When, for the first time ever, Mango beats Brooklyn in the 400 yard dash and comes in 1st place, Brooklyn doesn't cheer for her. Instead, she convinces her mother to buy her a cell phone and slides her way into the snobby Hailey Jo crowd. Bad luck hits when Mango accidentally breaks Brook's cell phone, but this luck is about to turn around.

Fracaswell Hyman does a fantastic job of bringing these characters to life. They are as natural as if they were walking down any middle school's hallways. Mango is sweet and has all the worries girls that age do, but she takes them on with a wonderful finesse. Not always without mistakes, but her attitude is an inspiration. Much of this also comes from her family, which is constantly supporting her even though they don't always agree with everything she does. Mango's parents listen and offer words of wisdom, and these words aren't only good for Mango to hear, but make the reader stop and think as well. It was refreshing to see such a healthy family balance, and how harmonizing doesn't always mean seeing things eye to eye.

A lot happens in this story, keeping the pace steady the entire way through. It was no problem to sit down with this and read it from beginning to end without once having the urge to set it down. There are serious moments, sad ones, shocking ones and a dash of humor and attitude to spice it up too. It's the kind of book readers (especially girls) ages 9 and up will be able relate with and see themselves in similar situations as they root for Mango the whole way through. And readers might even grab a bit of wisdom for their own lives along the way.

I received a complimentary copy and loved it, so I wanted to share my honest thoughts.

[Peg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Young readers are looking for diversity in the books they read and Mango Delight certainly fills that niche. Hyman does a great job on his first book for middle school readers having written it for his daughter and her friends who also realize the need for diversity in our ever changing society and world. Beyond that factHfactHyman addresses the reality and issues faced by most tweens/Young teens; those of family with their interrelationships, friends, jealousy, forgiveness, and yes- the drama; all a part of a tween world with or without the diversity issues. They are pretty much universal and within the context of the story are handled beautifully.
When I started reading Mango Delight I almost waved it off as a book that just didn't have what it took. I was beginning to feel as if the more diversity I ran into the weaker I would feel about this book. Never happened! All of the characters were well matched.
I hope to see Mango Delight continue in additional books by Hyman and will certainly follow recommendations to read Ghost and Patina by Jason Reynolda.
At 4 ☆s this is a book that should survive. I hope it does. I will certainly be recommending it. It needs to be read, particularly by those girls who are looking to read books rich in diversity. So jump in and enjoy as much as I did!

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mango Delight by Fracaswell Hyman, 219 pages. Sterling, 2017. $7.

Language: PG; Mature Content: G; Violence: G.

BUYING ADVISORY: EL – ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Mango and Brooklyn are best friends united against the “cell belles.” Then Mango beats both Brooklyn and the cell phone queen at track practice, and Brooklyn’s jealousy gets the best of her. She causes Mango’s dad to lose his job and attempts to humiliate Mango at the musical audition. Instead, her audition video goes viral and the cell phone queen wants to be her friend. Mango accepts her birthday invitation and suddenly it’s a game of who’s using who.

Kids who crave characters with the same school struggles they experience will enjoy this book. Jealousy, backstabbing, fake friending, and the social ramifications of cell phones all play prominently in the plot. Mango’s character is an excellent role model to teach kids the right way to handle social pitfalls. Character diversity well represented.

Valerie McEnroe, Media Specialist
https://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com/20...

[Valerie McEnroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mango and Brooklyn are best friends. Since their parents won't let them get a cell phone until they are 13, the "cell belles" take every opportunity to tease them. When Mango beats Brooklyn at Girls On Track practice, Brooklyn convinces her parents to get her a cell phone so she can use a running app. Suddenly she's pals with the cell belles, gets Mango's dad fired, and sets up a prank to humiliate her at the musical auditions. The plan backfires and Mango's audition video goes viral. Now the cell queen, Hailey Joanne, wants to be besties with Mango. Mango is conflicted about what it means to be a friend. It all just seems like a bunch of people using each other.

Many good things about this book. Cultural diversity. Excellent parental role models. And a plot that pretty much mirrors the friend backstabbing and cell phone woes of middle school life. The only thing that's a little unrealistic is the wealth and status of Hailey Joanne's family. Her dad owns a car dealership and her mom is heiress to a black hair care product line. Still, a book that tween girls should enjoy.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story "Mango Delight", A girl named Mango has a best friend named Brooklyn. That was Mango's only best friend. Mainly because they both don't have phone's like a lot others. However, Once Brooklyn get's a new phone along with new best friends, Mango is left alone. Mango definitely did miss Brooklyn but by the end of the week she knew Brooklyn wouldn't be coming back. Once Mango is on her own for sure now, She meet's a old friend of her's who loves and cares for her. Mango is as happy as can be until Brooklyn's phone was left in the bathroom. Mango's eyes wander and looks at Brooklyn's messages with others talking about Mango. in the middle of this, Brooklyn comes in and to her surprise Mango drops the phone in the toilet. With madness Brooklyn tells, As a result Mango gets Brooklyn a new phone. However, When Brooklyn transfers to a new school, Mango was left with her new best friends. Mango's hate relationship with the girls Brooklyn were friends with turned into her best friends. Overall, I recomend this book to anyone!

[Kitty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book starts out with Mango and her ex-bestie, Brooklyn. Then when Mango wins one GOT race, and Brooklyn thinks it really goes to Mango’s head, but in did not, and when Brooklyn gets a phone and says some pretty messed up things about Mango, then Mango accidentally drops Brook’s phone in water, their friendship breakes💔completely. Then Mango gets suspended from GOT, then has to buy a new phone for a turd who was really mean too her, Brook. She also makes a letter for Brook. Only to find it in the garbage. Then farther on, she becomes a star in the school musical. And Mango becomes friends with Hailey Joanne, who originally stole Mango’s BFF Brook from her. She gets invited to Haily Joanne Birthday party and gets her dad a cratering job there. Then when she is asked to preform with a band, emotional and romance make her life a hard rock. Those were only a few little details, you defiantly read this book! Only if you like ups and downs on a books and rich people are used getting what ever they want.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mango Delight was a delight! Pardon the pun. Fracaswell Hyman did an excellent job capturing the thoughts and speech of a 12-year-old girl. I thoroughly enjoyed hanging out with Mango for a few days while reading this book.

Quick side note: also love the cover illustration so much. Props to Frank Morrison!

Seventh grade is full of learning opportunities... including opportunities to strengthen or begin friendships. When her best friendship falls apart, Mango is understandably devastated. However, with the rekindling of an old friendship and the beginning of some new friendships and the unwavering support of her family, Mango might just make it through. ;) (It's a middle grades book. You know the ending won't be traumatic.)

Even though this was a middle grades book, I did not see most of the plot points coming. And I didn't see exactly how it would wrap up. I enjoyed being along for the ride. Mango is so endearing. You'll definitely root for her. I'm adding the second book to my to-read list!

[Jourdan Coliman]

This book follows the story of Mango delight as she navigates friendships in middle school and has to decide what type of friend she wants to be and who she wants to have as a friend. I would focus on healthy and unhealthy friendships as we read this book and help students identify qualities of each and how to leave an unhealthy friendship.
For a writing activity I would have students write friend wanted advertisements. Students would write a classified ad that lists the qualities that they would want to have in a friend. I would then hang these up on the wall with no names, only numbers to identify each student. We would then do a gallery walk and students would choose 3 numbers that they think sounds like a friend they could be. Students will turn in their 3 numbers and then they will receive the names of those students. This can help students branch out and find new friends and also list what would their ideal friend look like and who would they be?

[Carol Duncan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seventh-grader Mango Delight Fuller's BFF Brooklyn gets a new cell phone. Mango beats Brooklyn in a race at track practice. Then Mango accidentally breaks Brooklyn's now phone. She loses her BFF and her spot on the track team, and even costs her father his job. Brooklyn plots her revenge by signing Mango up to audition for the school musical. Her plan backfires when Mango not only wins the lead role, but becomes a YouTube sensation and attracts the attention of the school's queen bee, Hailey Jo.

Realistic fiction is one of my favorite genres. And this novel is a good one! I thought that at the end of the story that those peers that end up being her friends is realistic with a splash of that Disney ending that I love. I highly recommend this book.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot and I especially liked the fact that the cast of characters, while diverse, were just dealing with ordinary every day issues at school and with friendships. Nice!

I was a bit disappointed that Hyman sends the first friend out of the story early by having her to to another school. A missed chance to deal with that sort of very real friendship issue in a better way. But, Mango is a lively character who is very easy to root for and the book is a fast satisfying read. The phone issues were really well handled and very much adds to the contemporary feel to the story.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, the perils of middle school relationships! What kind of friend are you? What kind of friendships do you want to have? What talents do you have? I also loved how 7th grader Mango is Jamaican American, and even though racism doesn't enter the picture as a conflict in the story, the importance of hair care does present a dilemma: chemically straighten or naturally poofy? Every girl with kinky hair will relate! I also appreciated how her family faces problems, but they all clearly love and support each other.

[lucien alexander “sasha” · Rating 4 out of 5]

wow, i do NOT #liveforthedrama and i was so stressed out by so much of this book. but the honest portrayal of friendships, especially as impacted and mediated by race, class, gender, family... i liked it. mango is a believable heroine and i was rooting her for the whole time (not always the cast when i read middle grades/ YA). she faces the consequences of her choices and reflects on how to be a better friend. supporting characters are rich and interesting. this is exactly the kind of book that is the reason ~we need diverse books~

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A riveting book for 5th to 7th graders, this wasn't as fascinating for me - but I'm undecided on whether the annoying aspects are because I'm too old for it, or because I hate the whole consumer-based, idol-worship, celebrity-focused culture thing. As a kid, I intensely disliked even overhearing these superficial conversations ("You mean you don't have this newest thing?!", etc) , and to have a character claim to be above that stuff, but get sucked right into it was just dismaying.

At least the characters are diverse and celebrate it.

[Amber Chance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this with my 10 year old. It’s cute and appropriate for her age. She enjoyed the story and how Mango grew throughout the book. We also wondered what really happened with Brooklyn. Where did she go? Why did she really end up transferring schools? But we liked how Mango was able to gain new friends and find a talent she didn’t know she had all from a prank. This book also brought topics that were good to talk to with my daughter, such as being biracial, having a disability, and coming from different socioeconomic backgrounds.

We read this via hardcopy.

[Suzanne Warr · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wavered between three and four stars, with this one. I did enjoy it, and loved Mango's mom! But in the end had to give it the more honest-for-me three stars. However, I do recommend it for the tweens and teens out there who crave the texting lingo and who will, I suspect, eat up the over the top teen voice. My full thoughts--plus the cat's two cents--on my blog.

[Donna Dobihal Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is a real "delight!" Because it is chock full of discussion fodder, e.g., honesty, friendship, first crush, disabilities, financial issues, running, drama and more, it would make for an excellent book club book, especially for girls and moms. I did find it difficult to suspend disbelief regarding one character, who seemed way too wise for her age. However, this could be discussed as well; perhaps young readers would disagree.

[Liz Harmath · Rating 4 out of 5]

This goes right to the heart of middle school drama -- friends, "liking" someone, miscommunication, poor choices -- everything you remember. It also has some nice sections about about stretching out of your comfort zone. I found some of the language mystifying (not dirty), but maybe that's because I'm old. The heroine really does want to be a good person, but still gets stuck. And that's what I liked -- that even "good" people have to figure out how to get themselves out of self-created holes.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this free hardcover copy from a Goodreads Giveaway a few weeks ago. The book jacket is nicely done.

This book would make a great Book Club book to read and discuss. It is full of Middle School drama, and everyday issues of school, home, family, friendships, and life lessons.

The author, Fracaswell Hyman does a nice job weaving the characters in and out of the story and making it a book that you want to read in one afternoon.

[Tracie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mango has to learns face challenges and problems when she has a string of bad luck starting with losing her best friend and ending with her father losing his job. I enjoyed the realistic relationship between Mango and her mother and the fact that Mango finds her strengths can help in desperate situations.