The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl

by Stacy McAnulty

A lightning strike gave her a super power...but even a super genius can't solve the problem of middle school. This smart and funny novel is perfect for fans of The Fourteenth Goldfish, Rain Reign, and Counting by Sevens.

Lucy Callahan's life was changed forever when she was struck by lightning. She doesn't remember it, but the zap gave her genius-level math skills, and she's been homeschooled ever since. Now, at 12 years old, she's technically ready for college. She just has to pass 1 more test--middle school!

Lucy's grandma Go to middle school for 1 year. Make 1 friend. Join 1 activity. And read 1 book (that's not a math textbook!). Lucy's not sure what a girl who does calculus homework for fun can possibly learn in 7th grade. She has everything she needs at home, where nobody can make fun of her rigid routines or her superpowered brain. The equation of Lucy's life has already been solved. Unless there's been a miscalculation?

A celebration of friendship, Stacy McAnulty's smart and thoughtful middle-grade debut reminds us all to get out of our comfort zones and embrace what makes us different.

"Fresh story, great characters, a winner!" --Barbara O'Connor, author of Wish

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Friendship, Contemporary, Childrens

320 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2018

About the author

Stacy McAnulty is a children’s book author, who used to be a mechanical engineer, and dreams of someday being a dog therapist, a correspondent for The Daily Show, an astronaut, and a Green Bay Packer coach. She has written over 40 books, including the Indie Bestseller novel, The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl, and the 2017 Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Honor book Excellent Ed, illustrated by Julia Sarcone-Roach. Her other picture books include Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years, illustrated by David Litchfield; Moon! Earth’s Best Friend and Sun! One in a Billion, both illustrated by Stevie Lewis; Love, Brave, and Beautiful, all three illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff; Mr. Fuzzbuster Knows He’s the Favorite, illustrated by Edward Hemingway; and 101 Reasons Why I’m Not Taking a Bath, illustrated by Joy Ang. She’s also authored the chapter book series The Dino Files. When not writing, Stacy likes to listen to NPR, bake triple-chocolate cupcakes, and eat triple-chocolate cupcakes. Originally from upstate NY, she now lives in NC with her 3 dogs and family.

Reviews

[☘Misericordia☘ ⚡ϟ⚡⛈⚡☁ ❇️❤❣ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Acquired number synesthesia made easy. A fun reading for kids.

Q:
I’m a reclusive genius. ... As it turns out, I’m more than just numbers. (c)
Q:
Life is like an equation, and mine is perfectly balanced.
Nana + Uncle Paul + Math = Happiness.
Other people might need to add in friends or sports or money or something else, but my equation is already solved. (c)
Q:
I’ve thought of myself as a genius, a savant, and a freak, but never an orphan. (c)
Q:
Savant means that my math skills are far beyond normal, and acquired means I wasn’t born with this wacky ability. I got it because I was holding a metal fence during a lightning storm. (c)
Q:
Cecelia didn’t get any special powers. We stopped being friends soon after that. (c)
Q:
But really, I’m brain damaged. Part of my left lobe has been turned off, and now my right lobe works overtime. (c)
Q:
Every number has its own color and shape. Take the number 5—it’s a jelly bean shape, red-brown, like the color of Carolina mud. The number 12 is a set of cream-colored squares. The number 47 is a fluorescent-orange oval. Prime numbers have curves. Non-primes have hard edges.
These colors and shapes make it fun and easy to play with numbers, and I can find patterns in anything from the stock market to baseball games to the price of cereal. (c)
Q:
When people meet me, they expect Einstein or Maryam Mirzakhani (if they’re familiar with recent mathematical geniuses). But instead, they get the 1 and only freaky-strange Lucy. (c)
Q:
Uncle Paul said sometime after 4:00 p.m. It’s only 4:11. So, technically, he’s not late, and he won’t ever be, even if he doesn’t show up for days. (c)
Q:
“I have 4 friends.”
“Who?” Nana asks.
“SquareHead314, HipHypotenuse, Numberlicious, and GregS77.” (c)
Q:
... He…or she…can explain things in the simplest terms.”
“He or she?” ...
“Don’t be sexist. (c)
Q:
“I should be going to college,” I snap. Or at least high school.
“I don’t think so. You need to work on some of your soft skills before I send you off to MIT. (c)
Q:
“And if you die when you’re 80, that’s in 7,305 days. And it’ll be a Sunday.” ...
But Rachel started crying when she heard her best friend, Sofia Garcia, would outlive her by 172 days. (c)
Q:
It’s army green (like the number 20)... (c)
Q:
I take a breath and realize that hiding in the dumpster would have been a better way to spend the day. (c)
Q:
Middle school is supposed to be the worst. It’s like a giant hazing for adulthood. We all gotta go through it. (c)
Q:
“Have you ever heard the saying ‘Fake it till you make it’?” ...
“I don’t know. Maybe.”
“It means you gotta act like you belong or act like you can do something, and eventually you’ll be able to.”
“That doesn’t make any sense.” ...
“Go to school tomorrow with a big smile on your face and act like you belong there.”
Why do all adults think smiling is the answer?
...
“That’s right. And act like you belong at the popular lunch table and on the chess or basketball team or whatever extracurricular you want to do. Eventually, you’ll go from faking it to making it. It’s all about confidence. ... I’m basically giving you the secret to life, kiddo. No charge.” (c)
Q:
My walls are decorated with images of the Fibonacci spiral in nature: flower petals, pinecones, nautilus shells, far-off galaxies. (c)
Q:
I wouldn’t mind losing my sit-stand routine or not worrying about germs. But no one was taking away pi. (c)
Q:
Windy likes to think big, and she needs someone else to pull her back to earth. I’m her gravity. (c)
Q:
While he’s talking, I imagine showing him my world. He’d love to see math and numbers the way I do—in everything from the stars to building construction to ripples on a lake. Even water draining in the sink. I see circles and bisecting triangles that form equations in my brain. If only there were an easy way, like wearing special glasses; a lightning strike is too painful, and results aren’t guaranteed. (c)
Q:
“Engineering, science, finance, computer development, teaching, banking. These all require mathematics.” He leans forward on his stool. “But so do government, art, writing, love.” (c)
Q:
I’m starting to think working on a team is a form of torture. The teachers are doing this as part of a weird social experiment to see if they can make students hate each other. (c)
Q:
I’ll have to look up the number when I get home. I hate imprecise descriptions like lots, few, and hardly any. (c)
Q:
“Hi, my name is Lucy Callahan, and I have some questions for a school project.”
“What kind of questions?”
“How many dogs can your shelter hold? How many dogs get adopted each month? How many cats can you hold? How many cats—”
“All that information is available on the website.”
“No, it’s not. I have the website open in front of me.”
“Then it’s not public information. I’m sorry.” She doesn’t sound sorry.
“You don’t know how many dogs you have there?” I ask. “You just have to count.” (c)
Q:
Levi and I live in the same world, but we see things very differently. I guess it would be boring if we all had the same view. (c)
Q:
My brain lets me see these perfect circles filled with triangles defined by the ratio pi. More beautiful math that surrounds me everywhere. (c)
Q:
“Do you realize that everything that comes out of your mouth sounds like an insult?” ...
“Does not.”
“Yes, it does.” He nods. “You’re really talented.” (c)
Q:
“Is that the mean, median, or mode?” Most people use mean for average, but I want to be sure.
“It’s a guess.” … “I can show you our records. And you can mean, media, and mole the data yourself.” (c)
Q:
Sometimes the cosmos or God is trying to tell us something, (c)
Q:
Things are coming together. Correlation and causality. Things are making sense. (c)
Q:
“We need some good ideas, like right now.”
“Let’s just have a bake sale, raise some money, and get it over with,” Levi says.
“Do you bake?” I lie back on my bed.
“No.”
“Think bigger,” Windy demands.
“A big bake sale,” Levi says. (c)
Q:
I stare at my solution, lost in the beauty of it. The way an art lover would look at a painting in a museum. Then I tear it into little pieces and flush it down the toilet. Unlike an original artistic masterpiece, I can do the problem again, and it will be just as beautiful. (c)
Q:
LightningGirl: not all problems are solvable
SquareHead314: True.
SquareHead314: Sometimes solutions take time
LightningGirl: I’m out of time
SquareHead314: Sometimes solutions take a team
SquareHead314: Let me know if I can help. You never ask for help. (c)
Q:
I can fake being normal, and eventually I will be. (c)

[Cyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pros
⚡ easy reading, short chapters
⚡ plenty of character interactions
⚡ ARITHMETIC! Math was my favorite subject in grade school. Math homework was my favorite homework to work on. I'd even do extra math problems in my free time, for fun :)
⚡ "This is actually a hard answer to calculate. What makes someone a friend? A shared interest? Is there a minimum amount of time you need to spend together? Does the other person need to call you a friend, too?"
⚡ relatable, I saw myself in Lucy and saw my BFF in Windy
⚡ I love this cover, I'd love to own this

Cons
⚡ I do not own a physical copy
⚡ I don't even own an eBook copy
⚡ this was the library's copy (through Overdrive)
⚡ get me a damn copy

[Jolene Gutiérrez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lucy is brilliant. Not just because she became a math genius after she was struck by lightning, but because of the intricate way in which Stacy McAnulty has crafted Lucy. She is a 3-dimensional, believable character with many strengths, but also quite a few weaknesses, so the reader is instantly pulled into Lucy's mind and world. Her Nana homeschools Lucy, and reclusive Lucy likes it that way. When her uncle and Nana start discussing Lucy's lack of friends, though, Nana decides she's signing Lucy up for middle school. . .and chaos ensues.

Lucy wants to seem "normal," whatever that means, so she tries to hide her math abilities. She can't hide some of her OCD tendencies, though, or the fact that she wants to count words before she reads them, or her struggles to understand how to be a friend. And when she's thrown together with classmates to create a community service project, she reluctantly agrees to help out at a local dog shelter, even though dogs are germy and nasty. Meeting a special dog named Pi might help change Lucy's mind about that, and figuring out how to help the dogs in her own way might change. . .everything.

In this beautiful celebration of difference, math, friendship, dogs, and family, Stacy McAnulty has created an amazing book with plenty of talking/thinking points. You'll probably laugh and you'll probably cry. Read it yourself, read it to your kids, read it in your classroom, create discussions of diverse learners, math, and community service extensions around the book--the possibilities are infinite (OK, they're not REALLY infinite, but Lucy is much better with math and numbers than I am, so let's let her handle the number stuff)!

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the kind of children’s middle grade novel I can immediately sink into. I did not want to put it down. It helped me realize how I was often reading a book a day in elementary school (middle grade reader) and jr. high (middle school) because I think I was as fast a reader at ages 9-13 as I am now, and kids’ books “read fast” compared to most books written for an adult audience.

This book gets a full 5 star rating from me and would definitely have been a favorite of mine when I was 9-12 years old. I love the main character/narrator’s voice. She’s so engaging and sympathetic. There are so many interesting and memorable characters in this story, the kids and the adults too, and a dog as well.

I was nearly in emotional tears during many parts of the story, especially toward the end of it.

It’s a mostly realistic story, though some happy circumstances do occur, but I was glad for them, and they kept this story appropriate you young and sensitive readers.

I enjoyed the 4 illustrated “math” pages at the end, explaining pi and the Fibonacci sequence. I was not a math fan at Lucy’s age, but I think this book would have gotten me a bit more interested in the subject.

Highly recommended for kids ages 9-12, especially girls, and especially kids who feel different in any kind of uncomfortable way, and for anyone who likes a good friendship story, and for all math & numbers fans. I think most readers who can enjoy middle grade novels will enjoy this one.

[L A i N E Y · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Is that a sign of being real friends? When you know something they say should be followed by “JK””.

Oh how wonderful.

Lucy is so brave. They are all are. They were lonely before, in their own ways, but becoming friends and being together solved that problem for them all.

I love the project with rescued animals. It got me thinking that we should get kids to get close to animals earlier on, it could help instill a lot of compassion in them. It certainly worked for Lucy and the gang. And worked it did so so beautifully.


“Feeling wanted beats feeling safe. So I stay.”

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world would have us believe that the left brained and right brained amongst us can never see eye-to-eye. Think about it. How many times have you heard a perfectly intelligent person say with a shrug, “I’m bad at math”? This is considered acceptable behavior amongst the literary. In fact, the sentence might, at most, elicit some sympathetic shrugs from listeners. Now imagine the person saying, “I’m bad at reading”. Disbelieving laughter might come, following by stunned silence. Why do we feel this way? Because at a young age the speaker, as a child, was probably victim of a bad math experience or (and this is very likely) heard a respected grown-up say those very words “I’m bad at math” and internalized them. I mean, truly, some folks just aren’t good at it because their brains don’t operate that way, but there’s a whole swath of people that don’t suffer that same problem. Where’s their literature? Who are their heroes? And while I admit that writing a novel about a math lover is taking a left-brain issue and planting it squarely in right-brain territory, I’m also truly grateful this book exists.

You know how your parents tell you not to go swimming during a lightning storm? Apparently no one ever told Lucy not to go climbing any chain link fences either. One minute she’s a normal 8-year-old and the next she’s been struck by lightning. The good news is that she survived it. The odd news is that it gave her superpowers. Okay, not really. She got left with a lot of neuroses and maybe some obsessive-compulsive disorders, but there was one upside. Lucy is now a certifiable math genius. Heck, she’s already passed the GED at home. With that taken care of, Lucy is ready to apply to all the best colleges. There’s only one snag in the plan – Nana. Nana is convinced that Lucy needs some socialization, so the next thing she knows she’s being packed off to the local middle school. As expected, it’s awful, but there are a couple silver linings. There’s Windy, the social activist with a big mouth that takes Lucy under her wing. There’s also Levi, the cynical photographer who can keep a secret. Math is easy for Lucy. Middle school is hard, friendships (and betrayals) harder, and ultimately deciding to stay or to go? That may turn out to be the most difficult problem of all.

So let’s consider the wide and wonderful world of math in children’s novels. When I mention it, what books come immediately to mind? Maybe The Phantom Tollbooth or Flatland. Maybe The Number Devil or Gene Luen Yang’s Secret Coders series. You can’t think of all that many off the top of your head, though, can you? After a while you start asking yourself questions like “Does Alice Through the Looking Glass count?” I’ve seen plenty of novels seem to include math, but if the main character likes it then it’s usually played off as a quirk. For example, in Giant Pumpkin Suite, by Melanie Heuiser Hill, the main character’s math is present right at the start and then just sort of alluded to for the rest of the book. This is what makes Lightning Girl so extraordinary. As an author, McAnulty doesn’t skimp on the math. Nor does Lucy forget about it in the course of the story. Math is so integral to her being that it provides the answer on how to do the group project. It distances her from her friends. And at the end of the book we even have a section on Pi and another on Fibonacci. McAnulty is committing to the bit.

Disability is not a substitute for a personality. I’ve read countless novels where a character is solely defined by what makes them different. It can be a key component, absolutely, but if you make it all there is to know about the person then you find yourself in tricky territory. Boring territory, frankly. At the end of the book Lucy says, with a hint of surprise, “I’m more than just numbers”. Had the author done a poor job of bringing her to life, the reader might disagree with that little closing statement. Instead, you find yourself nodding a little. Lucy will never escape her accident. Not really. But she can still choose the kind of person she wants to be. And it’s because of her author that we, the readers, feel she’s capable of doing so.

As I read through the book, it was easy, as a 21st century adult, to identify many of Lucy’s quirks as a form of OCD. Why does no one else in the books, with the exception of Windy, seem to know about this? I took a step back. One important thing to remember is that even if we’re living in a world where people know what OCD is, that knowledge doesn’t mean they know what to do about it. Or how to handle it. Or how to explain it to classmates. The incompetence of real adults is always going to pave the way for the incompetence of literary adults. It’s all very believable, even if you wish it wasn’t.

There were other choices in the book that I found myself appreciating. Take how McAnulty writes characters. In this tale Lucy acquires two new friends. Friendships of three people tend to be very strong in children’s books. Just think of Ron, Harry, and Hermione. How do you create a trio without inadvertently referencing that classic threesome? Easy peasy, you just make sure that one of the trio is a cynic, the other a cock-eyed optimist, and the third a complete newbie to friendships in general. Or, as Windy tells Lucy at one point, “You don’t try to change people. It’s like you’re only trying to understand people.” Then there’s the bully. In many ways, Maddie is a pretty standard bully material. Disliking the hero from the get-go? Check. Hangers-on? Check. But even as she ratchets up the pain, McAnulty grants her moments of humanity, like when she gives Levi some money to buy himself a new lunch. She is awful, though. And after one of the more satisfying bully comeuppance moments in children’s literature, the author still does the standard it’s-not-okay follow-up to the moment but, c’mon. Still awesome.

Do you ever find yourself in a situation where you encounter an author that you honestly believe you’ve never read before, only to find that they’re the mild-mannered genius behind some of your favorite books? Man, I’ve been all over McAnulty’s new picture book Max Explains Everything (the single greatest breakdown of grocery store shopping you’ll find), little suspecting that the author was also behind Lightning Girl. This may be her debut novel but the woman knows how to write. In many ways this is just your usual fish-out-of-water middle school tale. But throw in all that math (she doesn’t skimp on the numbers), the character development, and the writing itself (a good dose of humor never hurts anything) and you’ve got yourself one heck of a fun, strong book. It doesn’t matter if the kids reading this thing like math or loathe it. It’s hard to resist a heroine (and a book) packed to the gills with electricity. This book? It’s number one.

For ages 9-12.

[Rachel L · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

A really cute middle grade novel about a girl who was struck by lightning and becomes a math genius. Smart enough to go to college at 12 if she wanted to, her Nana decides that she needs to conquer something else first: middle school.

The child genius in middle grade a trope I am getting a wee bit sick of but this book was still really excellent all around so I enjoyed it. Great for a kid who feels like they don't fit in and may be a little bit different.


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[Dani ❤️ Perspective of a Writer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Check out more reviews @ Perspective of a Writer...


What happens when a girl is struck by lightning?! It zaps her to genius level math skills with only a few side issues... Lucy prefers to be homeschooled as she doesn't have to deal with being made fun of for her rigid routines. Now at 12 years old she's got everything ready to go to enroll in college... only her grandma wants her to pass one more test... middle school!


The short review...

I loved Lucy! I think her kind of character is so relatable even for older readers because she's smart and yet also oh so vulnerable. Who doesn't struggle in some way with social encounters? It may be making friends, or it may be dealing with strangers. It could be public speaking... what ever it is the reader understands and sympathizes. We all at least have a parental unit that makes us go to school! Hahaha so the fact that Lucy has other options is neat in its own right.

This isn't just your average smart either... Lucy is smart for a very special reason, it makes her stand out. It gives her an identity to herself for a long time. What she learns through the course of the book is that being a math genius isn't everything. Her life doesn't have to revolve around just math... nor does it have to revolve around her OCD either! Yes, she's different but there is also a connection between her and others. This is important because Lucy also learned that everyone is going through something. No one is free from difficulty... its another universal idea we get to explore through Lucy's friendships.

Lucy, her mental health, her unique ability and her need to relate to other middle school kids are all MAJOR reasons for you to read The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl... but if you can believe it I still have more reasons...


Cover & Title grade -> B+

Not my favorite cover and so lacking in character I probably would NEVER have picked it up on my own. I probably wouldn't even have read the premise... which is so sad because this book is about more than school or math. Still I think a middle school reader may very well pick it up for that title alone and I think that is what the cover designer banks on. It's not a bad decision to focus on the target reader, I just think it should be taken into consideration who is doing the buying...


Why does EVERYONE need to read The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl?

-The Family!

“Take care of my girl. She’s 100 percent ordinary. Normal. Plain. Boring. Average.” Nana winks at me, and I beg with my eyes for her to stop. “Absolutely nothing special about her.”

GAHHHH her family so not perfect but sooooo loving. I just adored her uncle Paul and the small part he played in Lucy's story. He is such an important part of her feeling loved. Then there is her grandma who plays hard ball and makes THE deal with Lucy out of some tough love. You go!!


-Making friendships!

Only 27 hours after our post about Murphy goes up, he’s adopted. Windy acts like we saved the last black rhino from extinction.
“Calm down,” Levi warns her before homeroom. “We’ve helped 1 dog find a home. And Murphy only got adopted so quick because my mom put links to the Pet Hut blog all over her social media.”
“We saved a life.” Windy sits on Levi’s desk, her legs swinging back and forth.
“It’s a no-kill shelter,” he reminds her.
Windy shrugs. “Still. Without us, who knows how long poor Murphy would have suffered in that place?”
“He wasn’t suffering,” Levi says.
“Ugh,” Maddie moans as she walks by. “We’re all suffering just listening to you 3.”
“Then don’t listen,” Levi shoots back.
“And I looked at your website,” Maddie says.
“It’s a blog,” Windy corrects her.
“Whatever,” Maddie continues. “You had about 100 spelling mistakes, and you also—”
“Cool!” Levi says. “I’m glad you checked it out. Nice to know you’re a fan.”

There is always THAT friend in these types of books that just gets you and you accept them and there is that beautiful click. I loved Windy for that... but we go beyond that easiness to a tough time in their friendship and how to survive it. Plus there is a 2nd friend and the road to their relationship is a little more bumpy with Levi! It's the best of both!!


-Teacher Love!

“Every student is unique,” he says. “Sometimes I create unique tests.” He goes to his desk and picks up the pile of quizzes.
“That’s not fair.”
“It’s certainly fair. It’s not equal. That’s the word you were looking for. Equal.”

WOW... the teacher love in this book is so, so good. I love when a middle grade book shows how children can bond with those that teach them and how it helps facilitate learning and growth if that teacher is doing their job right. This takes that powerful example and super heroes it!!


-Cutie Pi!
GAHHHH you get NO CLUE from the cover that there are DOGS in this books... yes, there are dogs! And you will love them and why they are a part of the story and how they come to totally get at Lucy and her mental health issues... No a boy isn't the catalyst for change this time... its a dog!!


As a Writer...

This is an unusual month of reading in that I read two other middle grade books at the same time as this one... And The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl is the clear winner! The other two books weren't bad at all, and in fact, one of the two I adored almost as much as this one... Except that The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl had ALL of the elements of a great middle grade book and executes them all flawlessly!

Most middle grade books share certain elements that make them clearly fit the middle grade genre. A protagonist of the right age. Hard growing up topics at the heart of the story. No romance. A lot can fall into this range... but an excellent middle grade book also fits these criteria...

-The narrative sounds like a middle grader.
-Plot points are dealt in a way a middle grader finds authentic.
-Interactions are shown so that a reader can apply them to their own lives.
-Friendship and what that looks like is explored through plot and dialogue.

If you're looking for a book for a middle grade child to read and enjoy then you're looking for The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl! It has a smart protagonist, with some mental health and social issues that any reader can identify with because its all about being different. The message is so, so beautiful... you won't regret reading this girl empowerment story!


⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Authenticity
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Writing Style
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Plot & Pacing
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ World Building

______________________
You can find this review and many others on my book blog @ Perspective of a Writer. See my special perspective at the bottom of my reviews under the typewriter...

Please like this review if you enjoyed it! *bow* *bow* It helps me out a ton!!

[Fafa's Book Corner]

Mini review:

DNF

GR Ultimate Summer Reading Challenge: Beach Bum.

This was recommended to me by Lola! Click on her name to read her review! I was really looking forward to reading this! I didn't hesitate to put it on hold when I saw that it was in my library. Unfortunately it wasn't for me.

I felt that some of the science wasn't accurate. And that really damped my will to complete this book. Alas I DNFed.

This was a personal thing. I'm sure others will enjoy this more than I did.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second book for Middle Grade March is a win and great on Audio! Lucy is a very special girl. She was once struck by lighting, and now she has incredible, genius level math skills. I love that Lucy has a non-traditional family. She lives with her Grandmother and I love her so much. Lucy could technically go to college now, but her Grandmother wants her to attend a normal school, make friends, and have the typical kid experiences. I couldn't agree with her Grandmother more! This book has many important lessons. This would be a great read for kids who are maybe just starting middle school, or even attending a new school. As the synopsis says... it's really all about learning how to get out of your comfort zone and trying new things. Lucy has some OCD tendencies, and you get to see how she works through them throughout the story. It's also about friendship and giving back to the community (I really enjoyed their side project at the animal shelter). However, I think the most important lesson is that being different is okay and most definitely not a bad thing. Highly recommend for this age group!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Knowing the path can be just as important as knowing the solution.”

The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy McAnulty really surprised me! It is my #1 biggest surprise of the year actually. It has everything from sitting routines and Clorox wipes to loyalty and love to even *whispers* math. Yes, I said it…math. But trust me! It all comes together to form a big hearted read.

12 year old Lucy Callahan was struck by lightning when she was 8 years old that, as she puts it, “rewired” her brain. From that highly charged moment on, Lucy was a math genius. Math became her superpower. And constant companion. Lucy can do it all when it comes to math. From patterns to pi! But all those numbers, solutions, and knowledge have led her to online classes and too much alone time locked away in the apartment. Her Nana is worried. She believes Lucy needs sunlight and fun and friends, so Nana enrolls her in 7th grade. Real life-out in the world-with other kids 7th grade! Lucy can solve any math problem, but can she figure out a way to survive and make friends in 7th grade?

Confession time….math is NOT my thing. I’m more of a history gal, but Lucy and math won me over. I love how Lucy saw the world and talked about it all--like trying to find clothes with a prime number of stripes or books with numbers in the title. Lucy brings the numbers alive on the page! Listen…

“I also see math. Every number has its own color and shape. Take the number 5—it’s a jelly bean shape, red-brown, like the color of Carolina mud. The number 12 is a set of cream-colored squares. The number 47 is a fluorescent-orange oval. Prime numbers have curves. Non-primes have hard edges.”

I love that. Jelly bean shape! I can’t emphasize this point enough—Ms. McAnulty really showed math in a whole new light in shapes, colors, and patterns. Dare I say it? She made math and numbers sound fun. Yes, I'm shocked too. :) But math really shines here!

Along with 2 good friends, 2 teachers who challenge Lucy, 1 big jerk, and 1 adorable dog named Pi. Levi and Windy were standout characters for me though. They were so real. Both moved and sounded like real kids with fears and faults and qualities to be proud of. Every groan from Levi made me laugh and every hidden sweet and enthusiastic cause Windy rooted for made me smile. Windy, Levi, and Lucy formed a powerful trio filled with friendship and loyalty. They’ll make you proud. The way they learn to stand up for themselves and each other truly made my heart happy. Add that all up and you get a story that will make you feel so lucky you found it.

Anyway I’m rambling. I do that when I’m in love with a book. I needed a creative and inspirational jolt to break a brutal book slump and this little book did that and more. Do you believe in signs? I do sometimes—especially when books are involved. I finished this book with happy tears in my eyes and a smile on my face on November 23rd---also known as Fibonacci Day in math circles. (btw…A Fibonacci sequence is a series of numbers where a number is the sum of the 2 numbers before it. Look! I’m talking math.) It felt meant to be! It felt like this book found me at just the right moment. And I think Lucy’s Nana would agree with me on that.

Read this book. You’ll cheer, cry, and smile watching Lucy discover what and who really matters in life. A sweet read that reminded me that a problem that feels unsolvable can be easier to divide and conquer with a little help from friends and family.

HIGHLY recommended.

p.s. There are so many wonderful elements to this story I wanted to point out here. BUT at the same time, I felt the need to keep those wonderful little details a secret for you to discover on your own. Do you know what I mean? It’s a fine line to walk. I want readers to feel and see the beauty and power as they meet Lucy. I don’t want to steal anything from the reader by saying I loved this and that. But oh my goodness I want to shout my love so badly! Like…. The sweet almost crush like feelings growing for Levi or never making Lucy’s family situation a sad part of the story. Uncle Paul and Nana were the best! Eek! I’ll stop now. Haha….I hope you meet Lucy and see what I mean.

**RE-READ** 8/18/23
I don’t re-read books all that often, but sometimes it has to be done. And this book…well, it charmed me all over again! It was exactly what I needed this week. Lucy, Windy, Levi, and Pi made me smile, laugh, and tear up. “Unsolvable problems” are a lot easier to face with friends and family by your side.

A read full of dogs, math, teamwork, and love. Here's to finding the people in life who'll love and support you--no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

[Katy O. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to the author for sharing this review copy with Kid Lit Exchange!

What a heartwarming and unique middle school story! I loved reading about Lucy and her savant brain as she navigated the challenges of middle school, challenges that are daunting even for the most school-savvy tween. The math angle of this book is absolutely fabulous and while the setting is middle school, this book is appropriate all the way down through 4th grade (younger too, but reading level may be challenging - fine for a read aloud though!). As a dog lover, the pet shelter angle made my heart sing and there may just have been times that tears came to my eyes.

Highly recommend for all libraries and classrooms serving a middle grade audience! I had already pre-ordered this for my library and daughter based on the recommendations of another middle grade audience ~ can't wait to share it with kids!

[Manybooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot of my Goodreads friends seem to have enjoyed if not actually majorly adored Stacy McAnulty's 2018 middle grade novel The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl (and the majority of GR reviews are also positive and with pretty high general ratings). However and for me personally, sorry, but I ended up stalling and giving up on The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl when I tried reading the story (even though yes, I did and do kind of enjoy main protagonist, struck by lightning and henceforth math genius Lucy Callahan's tone of narrative voice, but sadly not enough to keep reading The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl).

For indeed, I do generally speaking have some rather major concerns both emotional and philosophical (read intellectual) with how in fictional representations of STEM themes (and in my opinion particularly regarding stories geared towards younger readers) math, engineering and science savvy individuals both young and old are far too often (and stereotypically) equated with geekiness, with mental health challenges, with being socially inept and unable to fit in at school, at home, in society in general (nothing wrong with not being neuro-typical, of course, nothing wrong with novels showing mental health concerns and neuro-diverse characters either, but why are science and math geniuses so very often being presented and depicted by their authors as nerdy, as socially awkward, as painfully introverted, as always saying things at the wrong time, in the wrong place etc. etc.). And honestly, I (and especially so my inner teenager who was considered quite majorly geeky and hugely nerdy in middle and high school but who also had classmates who were very science and math oriented and at the same time really popular and did not at all fit the portrait of the geeky, socially inept and even potentially a bit mad scientist and mathematician type) would much rather be reading stories where if the main protagonist(s) (and indeed also more secondary characters) are supposed to be individuals with major math or science know-hows and talents, that this could be textually achieved for said individuals without all kinds of mental health and social and emotional immaturity and awkwardness scenarios and challenges attached (not only much too stereotypical and much too one-sided for me, but also rather denigrating and problematic in and of itself, and yes, even if inadvertently so, as for me, this type of textuality rather represents a denigration of STEM and making STEM seem ridiculous and weird). Therefore and with my above musings in mind, with The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl and main protagonist Lucy Callahan, well, the main STEM message that the author, that Stacy McAnulty seems to be presenting (at least to and for me) is that being a math genius must somehow entail being reclusive, being beset with and by a multitude of quirks and challenges (including OCD), being awkwardly socially isolated and really only into one thing, into mathematics and just that. And that Lucy also just has to be depicted by McAnulty in The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl as acquiring her amazing mathematical talents and abilities after being struck by lightning and receiving brain damage (and thus being kind of a flawed savant), this all has been a huge and all-encompassing textual turn off for me (and also hugely angers and infuriates me as well, I must say) and is really not promoting and making STEM popular but is rather the opposite so to speak, so that I simply do not want (well, at least at present) to bother continuing with The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl (and I am for this reason giving The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl a DNF and must point out how I do wish that Stacy McAnulty could have written her Lucy Callahan character for The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl as being a mathematical genius not because there is something damaged about her brain after that lightning strike but simply because she is talented regarding math and with no complications and strange reasons as to why that is the case).

[MissBecka Gee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Lola for recommending such a cool book!

Well that was a pleasant surprise!
Our main character, Lucy, was struck by lightning when she was younger and as a result has become a math wizard who has a case of OCD to go with it.
As someone with a mild case of OCD it was refreshing to see acceptance and support for Lucy throughout the book. Anyone dealing with any form of OCD will know that it is not easy to get understanding of all our "quirks" and "weird habits" as a lot of my family and friends like to phrase it.
Levi, Windy and Nana are all so casual and accepting. This was refreshing from the usual confusion and anger we find most characters with OCD receiving.
The amount of nonchalance they show with Lucy's rituals is wonderful to see in print.
While it's great that people feel comfortable enough to ask questions to help them understand why I feel the undeniable urge to make an entire timetable for the day before I can leave the house...the questions usually just make me more self conscience and embarrassed about something I have no control over...plus that sh*t was not in my agenda for the day!!!
For me I prefer when someone acts like it's normal that I never eat yellow candy and that I usually schedule my day in restricted time chunks instead of tasks.
When someone realizes, and ignores, these "habits" I have and decides to pretend it's not happening...it's like winning the lottery.
Or at least what I assume it feels like having never won.
I think the way the supporting characters were with Lucy was what really made this one a winner for me. Ya the story is great and there is lots of feels, but for me that was all secondary.
This is one you should check out for sure!

[Erin Entrada Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED this book.

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book so much!

Misunderstood math genius. The grandma wants her to fit in a normal school and to make friends.
She was struck by lightning and due to a condition after that our main character can solve all kinds of Math problems in her head.

Yes, she gets to meet new people and yes get friends for life which I am sure not many of us do.

I love LEVI the true buddy and Mr. Scott the teacher. Windy the supposedly good friend is so very much her age.

I love how effortlessly wholesome the entire book is! The meanies are there. There’s harassment, bullying and TW for shelter animals’ stories of real life suffering.

I am so glad I kept this book to pick up at the right time.

Love it!

[Stephanie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

What Stood Out For Me:
Oh, I love it when a book takes me by surprise and turns into a good dog rescue story! I was enjoying the story of Lucy and her middle-school trials, which were spot-on (Stacy McAnulty knows her stuff!) Then in Chapter 19, Lucy visits an animal shelter for a school project and the already wonderful book gets even better!
I think middle- grade readers would absolutely eat this book up! I’m far removed from that age, but this book is on my “ Best Of 2019” list. Can’t wait for McAnulty’s next coming in September!
Memorable Quotes:
(Pg. 15)”Life is like an equation, and mine is perfectly balanced. Nana + Uncle Paul+ Math = Happiness.)”

[Tani]

Recommended by: Lola Reviewer

[thebooksthief_ Ania ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,75⭐️/5
Książka z literatury dziecięcej w języku angielskim, która mnie zachwyciła. Według mnie jest idealna na początek i język jest łatwiejszy niż w Harrym Potterze(tom 1) po angielsku.
Bohaterka była dobrze wykreowana, podoba mi się wątek ze schroniskiem dla psów.
Książka z wartościami, kotra niejednokrotnie spowodowała uśmiech na mojej twarzy. Przez nią robi się także cieplutko na serduszku. Zakończenie było przewidywalne, lecz pomimo tego mnie usatysfakcjonowało.
Książka z wydawnictwa Random House, kupiona na Amazon.

[Robyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE MISCALCULATIONS OF LIGHTNING GIRL
Stacy McAnulty

Lucy was a normal little girl until she was struck by lightning, then she became a math genius. HOWEVER, she seems to have a more difficult time getting along with people. She has a visual and constant relationship with numbers but almost no contact with kids her own age. At 12 she is ready to go to college, but her Grandmother has another plan for her. Middle School!

Lucy has a hard time making friends, but she manages through trials and tribulations to get it done. The book is deep in family relationships, great math information, forgiveness, and being adaptable.

I loved Lucy and her family. McAnulty does a great job writing that three-dimensional childlike character with defined math skills and an analytical way of thinking. I appreciated the personality of the friends and family as well.

This should be popular in middle school.

4 stars

Happy Reading!

[Nicole M. Hewitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5 Stars

This book was a breath of fresh air, with a uniquely intelligent MC who we can truly root for!

What Fed My Addiction:

A mathematical mind.
When Lucy was struck by lightning, she woke up with genius-level mathematical skills: acquired savant syndrome is the technical name for it. This, in itself, is really interesting, but Lucy’s mathematical skills affect the way she sees the world in so many ways. For instance, she “sees” numbers as colors, sees complex geometrical shapes in the world around her, and she is constantly counting and calculating everything. In addition, we’re given many tiny glimpses into the way her mind truly works—little details that add so much to her character. An example is how every number in the book is written numerically (even if it’s something like, “that 1 girl we met”). It’s these little touches that make the book fun. I loved being inside Lucy’s unique mind!

OCD.
Lucy also suffers from OCD, which makes her stand out among her peers in some pretty unavoidable ways. While I don’t have OCD myself, it seemed to me that McAnulty thoroughly researched Lucy’s issues, and the representation feels very real to me based on what I’ve been told from others who do struggle with it. I appreciated that there were no solutions or cures presented in the book—just ways of dealing with those struggles.

Relatable middle grade issues.
Even though Lucy is incredibly unusual herself, the story focuses on many issues that any middle grader would relate to: wanting to fit in (and sometimes pretending to be something you’re not in order to do so), keeping secrets from friends and feeling betrayed by them, the desire to get past the point where everyone looks at you like a kid … and more!

Positive adult figures.
Unlike in some kids’ books, the adults in this book are all portrayed positively, as people who want to help (and who are capable of helping, even if they can’t magically solve every problem). Sure, there’s one teacher who gives Lucy a slightly hard time, but it’s based more on misunderstanding than anything else, and she isn’t a dumb or horrible adult. Lucy’s grandmother and uncle are delightful, and I love the portrayal of a unique family that works.

Dogs!
I’m a sucker for dogs, and the kids’ project at a pet shelter plays a large role in the book. (I’ll warn you that there’s a part of the book that made me cry involving a dog—in case your MG reader is sensitive to that sort of thing—but it all ends up okay.)

What Left Me Hungry for More:

Not much.
I really can’t think of anything specifically negative to say. There are some books that deal a little more seriously with OCD and friendship issues, but I think it’s sometimes nice to have a less “heavy” alternative for some kids (my daughter can’t read books that are too sad or scary, so this one would work well for her). For a MG audience, I think this book hit just the right tone.

Lightning Girl grabs your attention right from the start and never lets go. I flew through the book and enjoyed every minute of it. I give it 4.5/5 Stars.

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via Rockstar Book Tours and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

[Michelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ll begin by saying I don’t think this is a true 1-star book, but I’m giving it that rating so that other parents will see that this book has LGBTQ content, since none of my searches revealed that, and I think that parents should be able to find that information without having to read the book themselves.

One of the main character’s sidekicks has two moms. This is introduced about 15% of the way into the book, and mentioned a couple of other times as well. It is just a passing mention (adds nothing to the storyline) but it is still there.

I would give this book 3 stars otherwise. There are things that are irritating (every number is written as a digit, no matter the context), and most of the kids are incredibly mean, petty, and immature. The plot is ok but some things are overly repetitive and others aren’t elaborated on enough.

I did appreciate that race was not an issue in this book. By that I mean that every single character wasn’t described by their hair and skin color. Issues between teens were because they’re teens, not because of race. So refreshing.

[Mary Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish this book had been there for my middle school me. No, I'm not a math savant, but like just about everyone else in the universe, I felt like I didn't fit in. News flash -- hardly anyone does.

Great story of friends and family and a great math teacher (bummer that the LA teacher is such a jerk).

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story + Authentic characters + Realistic situations + Friendship + Life Lessons = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed reading this story 😃 This one would be great as a read-aloud or for middle-grade book club read. Lots of opportunity for great discussions. McAnulty's writing style is engaging and relatable. I highly recommend it!

[Aj Sterkel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Likes: Lucy reminds me of a smarter, middle-school-aged me. She has obsessive compulsive disorder and struggles to get along with kids who don’t understand her routines. Like Lucy, I had a mental illness and was bullied for it in school. I thought I was a freak who no one could understand (and I threw myself many embarrassing, melodramatic pity parties because of it).

Lucy and her friends—Windy and Levi—are well-developed characters with distinctive personalities. I like their friendship dynamics. They all have flaws and aren’t afraid to call each other out when they’re acting stupid. They don’t always get along, but they always forgive each other for mistakes (or miscalculations). I love the adult characters, too. They behave like realistic adults and (mostly) act in the best interest of the child characters.

Lucy is a girl who loves math! That’s becoming more common in children’s books, but it’s still not something you see often enough. Math shapes the way Lucy experiences the world. For example, every number in the book is written numerically, even if it’s not grammatically correct that way. It shows that Lucy thinks in numbers.

Even kids who don’t have OCD or a math obsession can find something relatable in this novel. It’s a story about the desire to make friends and what happens when a friend betrays you. It’s about secrets, bullying, accepting differences, community service, and how even geniuses need help sometimes.

The pacing is fast. The plot isn’t predictable. I was able to read this book quickly and never found my attention wandering. I think this novel would appeal to kids. I can imagine preteen-me enjoying it.



Dislikes: I have two minor complaints. First, the secondary characters are flat. Windy’s girlfriends are names with no personalities. This is especially a problem with Windy’s frenemy, Maddie. I wish we knew more about her. She’s mean with no redeeming qualities. Why is she even trying to be friends with Windy? They don’t get along.

Second, a lot of this story takes place in an animal shelter. I didn’t believe that the animal shelter owner would let random kids mess with her records. The kids seem to have an unrealistic amount of freedom in this shelter. They do whatever they want with very little adult supervision. That seems like a good way to get everybody in trouble.



The Bottom Line: My dislikes are small. This is the best book I’ve read so far in 2019. It’s sweet, thoughtful, and relatable.



Do you like opinions, giveaways, and bookish nonsense? I have a blog for that.

[Ava · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!! I barely used my bookmark because I couldn't put it down! I highly recommend this book to anyone!

[Brittany McCann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was very well done. Lucy Callahan felt quirkily normal, even given her mathematical genius. Her struggles to fit in at middle school were enjoyable to read about. I loved the number/color combinations.

Pi gave me some tears, though.

Lots of excellent quotes
"Every number has its own color and shape. Take the number 5—it’s a jelly bean shape, red-brown, like the color of Carolina mud. The number 12 is a set of cream-colored squares. The number 47 is a fluorescent-orange oval. Prime numbers have curves. Non-primes have hard edges.
These colors and shapes make it fun and easy to play with numbers, and I can find patterns in anything from the stock market to baseball games to the price of cereal. "

“I have 4 friends.”
“Who?” Nana asks.
“SquareHead314, HipHypotenuse, Numberlicious, and GregS77.”

"I’m starting to think working on a team is a form of torture. The teachers are doing this as part of a weird social experiment to see if they can make students hate each other. "

“Don’t be afraid of numbers. Use them to compute your solutions. Look at the world as it is intended.”

Overall, it's a delightful, easy read.

4.5 Stars rounded up to 5.

[Nora T E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Germ girl. Freak. Weirdo. All names Lucy Callahan was called because of her OCD. Lucy always tried to be the girl everyone else liked. But she couldn't do that no matter how hard she tried. Her OCD prevented her from being who others wanted her to be. Or maybe because she didn't want to be that person. This story showed me that you shouldn't try to fit into other people's expectations of who you ought to be. Why put so much effort into someone you don't want to be, when you could put absolutely no effort, into who you are. Lucy was trying so hard to be like the pretty, popular, cheerleader, blondie type girl, when she could've been who she really was. Even if thats...Germ girl. Freak. Weirdo.

[Mahsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

من ترجمه این کتاب را خواندم، با نام «فرمول نجات پی» که آزاده حسنی ترجمه‌اش کرده و نشر پرتقال چاپش کرده.
کتاب راجع به دختری است که پس از برخورد صاعقه دچار سندرم ساوانت اکتسابی شده و حالا در ریاضی یک ابرنابغه است!
کتاب برای من بسیار دوست‌داشتنی بود، از شخصیت‌های تنها و به شدت کیوت و بغل‌کردنی کتاب گرفته که در طول داستان انگار بزرگ‌تر و پخته‌تر می‌شوند، تا وسواس‌های عجیب و بامزه لوسی و دوستی‌هایی که در کتاب شکل می‌گیرند.
جالب‌ترین درسی که خواندن کتاب برای من داشت این بود که همه ما همانقدر که معمولی هستیم، خاصیم و در عین خاص بودنمان، معمولی هستیم. فقط آدم‌هایی را لازم داریم که ما را همانجوری که هستیم بپذیرند، که اسم این آدم‌ها «دوست» هست :)

[Afoma (Reading Middle Grade) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, dear Lucy.

I enjoyed this book so much, which says a lot for a Math hater! Lucy acquires savant Level Math skills after being struck by lightning as a child. She also becomes obsessive-compulsive and reclusive after the incident. So her grandmother insists she goes to middle school for at least a year, in addition to other social requirements.

The narration of this book is so well done! I can’t recommend it enough for math lovers, but everyone will enjoy following Lucy’s social miscalculations and her journey to seeing how much having people in your life can enrich it.