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Honest June #1
Honest June
For June Jackson, middle school is hard enough--but it's even harder when a fairy godmother grants her the ability to only tell the truth ALL THE TIME! Is it a blessing... or a major curse?
June Jackson is an expert at exceeding people's expectations. She can't help it; she's a people-pleaser! She'll do everything she can to be the perfect student, daughter, and friend, even if it means ignoring her own feelings sometimes. Cue Victoria, June's secret fairy godmother, who blesses June with the ability to never tell a lie in the hopes that June will finally be honest with her loved ones. Instead of telling them the truth to their faces, June turns to a secret online blog--the only place she can write out her true feelings without hurting people.
When all of her responsibilities start to pile on--field hockey, the school paper, family responsibility, her friends--June begins feeling so overwhelmed that sometimes it feels hard to breathe. Not to mention June is desperately trying to figure out how to overthrow the spell at the same time! When the pressures reach new heights, will Honest June finally be able to break free and tell whole truth and nothing but?
June Jackson is an expert at exceeding people's expectations. She can't help it; she's a people-pleaser! She'll do everything she can to be the perfect student, daughter, and friend, even if it means ignoring her own feelings sometimes. Cue Victoria, June's secret fairy godmother, who blesses June with the ability to never tell a lie in the hopes that June will finally be honest with her loved ones. Instead of telling them the truth to their faces, June turns to a secret online blog--the only place she can write out her true feelings without hurting people.
When all of her responsibilities start to pile on--field hockey, the school paper, family responsibility, her friends--June begins feeling so overwhelmed that sometimes it feels hard to breathe. Not to mention June is desperately trying to figure out how to overthrow the spell at the same time! When the pressures reach new heights, will Honest June finally be able to break free and tell whole truth and nothing but?
240 pages, Hardcover
First published December 28, 2021
29 people are currently reading
1752 people want to read
About the author
Tina Wells
23 books53 followersTina Wells is the author of the best-selling tween fiction series Mackenzie Blue, and its spinoff series, The Zee Files. Tina lives on the East Coast but likes to travel and share her passion to encourage and uplift young people.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
March 2, 2023
Y’all what a precious story about a young 11 year old girl - June. She just wants to make everyone else happy, but struggles with telling the truth…she learns just how important it can be to tell the truth. She’s visited by her fairy godmother, Victoria, who puts her under this spell where she can’t lie- if she does, she will basically start sneezing uncontrollably! So she starts to learn all about why it’s important to be honest and not hold everything inside. Very important message here. I truly related to her, especially my inner child, because I am always such a people pleaser. Can’t wait to read more about June! Sweet middle grade story!
March 3, 2022
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December 6, 2021
This is a heavy handed, slow moving story of a girl who can't be honest if it was a truck running her over.
June feels it is better to just make people happy, so she has to sneak her clothes that she wants to wear for school, and change there, so her mother doesn't find out. She takes on too many extra curricular activities because her father feels she needs to in order to succeed. She doesn't tell her friends how she really feels.
And then, after four chapters of this, the fairy godmother shows up and puts a spell on her so she has to tell the truth.
All well and good, but it is in your face what the moral of this story is, and how to get June to come around, that it almost feels as though we are being punished too.
And then the book ends.
I know it is a message that has to be put out there, and I appreciate that this is something that kids need to know, but this didn't work for me, hitting me over the head with it.
June was written well, even if she was always whining about being forced to tell the truth.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
June feels it is better to just make people happy, so she has to sneak her clothes that she wants to wear for school, and change there, so her mother doesn't find out. She takes on too many extra curricular activities because her father feels she needs to in order to succeed. She doesn't tell her friends how she really feels.
And then, after four chapters of this, the fairy godmother shows up and puts a spell on her so she has to tell the truth.
All well and good, but it is in your face what the moral of this story is, and how to get June to come around, that it almost feels as though we are being punished too.
And then the book ends.
I know it is a message that has to be put out there, and I appreciate that this is something that kids need to know, but this didn't work for me, hitting me over the head with it.
June was written well, even if she was always whining about being forced to tell the truth.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
June 21, 2022
“But now that you know the power of your words, use them to empower yourself, not to make yourself feel weak. Remember the truth is a superpower.”
Where was this book when I was 11 years old with the weight of the entire world (or so it seemed) on my shoulders. June is spunky, loving and a genuine main character. I enjoyed being apart of June’s journey dealing with the “being honest always” curse. Sometimes funny and other times quite introspective. I know this is for a middle grade audience. But this book helped reinforce some life lessons. I loved it! I had so much fun!
Where was this book when I was 11 years old with the weight of the entire world (or so it seemed) on my shoulders. June is spunky, loving and a genuine main character. I enjoyed being apart of June’s journey dealing with the “being honest always” curse. Sometimes funny and other times quite introspective. I know this is for a middle grade audience. But this book helped reinforce some life lessons. I loved it! I had so much fun!
March 4, 2024
I think there is a lot going on and it was not my type of genre and I think it deserves a 3 star in my opinion
November 26, 2021
3.5 stars rounded off!
This is another middle grade novel that surprised me pleasantly! It's plot was what attracted me, but the writing style had me hooked!
Plot:
The plot was quite unique with a pretty cute moral coming out.
Characters:
This. This is what I didn't like about the book. June was honestly pretty annoying. Saying little white lies is one thing, but living a lie is another! Nia was another character who annoyed me. A lot. Blake and June's mother were pretty fun to read about, and were my favourite characters.
Writing Style:
I loved the writing style! it was addictive and easy to get into. Two things I didn't like were the endless use of 'Girl' in places where it wasn't even necessary and the ending. I thought it was kinda abrupt.
Overall, this was a fun, light read, I would recommend to people looking for middle grade contemporary with a dash of fantasy!
Thank you to TBR and Beyond Tours and the author for providing me with a free digital copy to review. This in no way, has influenced my thoughts on the book.
This is another middle grade novel that surprised me pleasantly! It's plot was what attracted me, but the writing style had me hooked!
Plot:
The plot was quite unique with a pretty cute moral coming out.
Characters:
This. This is what I didn't like about the book. June was honestly pretty annoying. Saying little white lies is one thing, but living a lie is another! Nia was another character who annoyed me. A lot. Blake and June's mother were pretty fun to read about, and were my favourite characters.
Writing Style:
I loved the writing style! it was addictive and easy to get into. Two things I didn't like were the endless use of 'Girl' in places where it wasn't even necessary and the ending. I thought it was kinda abrupt.
Overall, this was a fun, light read, I would recommend to people looking for middle grade contemporary with a dash of fantasy!
Thank you to TBR and Beyond Tours and the author for providing me with a free digital copy to review. This in no way, has influenced my thoughts on the book.
January 1, 2022
I really enjoyed this middle grade fantasy!
It felt like Ella enchanted, where a fairy godmother gives you a blessing that seems more like a curse. June is a likable heroine with a lot of stressors that will make you empathize with her. And how she learns to deal with her stress and the expectations of others will warm your heart.
It felt like Ella enchanted, where a fairy godmother gives you a blessing that seems more like a curse. June is a likable heroine with a lot of stressors that will make you empathize with her. And how she learns to deal with her stress and the expectations of others will warm your heart.
October 26, 2021
The only problem with pleasing everyone is that you have to tell white lies sometimes. Well, a lot of the time. June Jackson doesn’t think it’s such a bad way to cope with the stresses of family, friends, and Middle School. That is until she’s taught a powerful lesson in truth-telling in the form of a fairy godmother. Her blessing? Curse? Or is it that now she can’t tell a lie. What follows is a funny and touching book about the consequences of truth, white lies, and the anxiety between them.
I enjoyed the laughs and stress of this book (if that doesn’t sound too odd). As someone with anxiety, I could identify with June and her people-pleasing approach to family, friends, and school. Even reading it as an adult, I realized that growing up, bending the truth can rob us of what comes out of the truth, however difficult that might be.
To listen to my interview with the author, go to my podcast at: https://zibbyowens.com/transcript/tin...
I enjoyed the laughs and stress of this book (if that doesn’t sound too odd). As someone with anxiety, I could identify with June and her people-pleasing approach to family, friends, and school. Even reading it as an adult, I realized that growing up, bending the truth can rob us of what comes out of the truth, however difficult that might be.
To listen to my interview with the author, go to my podcast at: https://zibbyowens.com/transcript/tin...
May 4, 2022
Held my 7 year old’s attention certainly, as a read aloud, but it’s about 75 pages too long. Lots of repetition and the ending is drawn out. Very endearing premise and great lesson.
February 19, 2025
The beginning of this book had the feel of something that has been market curated. It feels like a checklist of items was decided beforehand by a bunch of executives, peer reviewed by a focus group and then Tina Wells and her ghost writer went one by one down the line to make sure that this book hit all the key points.
This does not necessarily have to be a bad thing. There's nothing wrong inherently with deciding that you want your book to have certain key elements or for a book to be crafted by a company. There are plenty of books that are fantastic that I'm sure were made in this manner or authors that seem genuine that are only doing it for the money. The difference is that Honest June doesn't have the quality to back up its checklist.
To be fair, it does find a more authentic groove as time passes, however, for many readers, I'm sure that will be too little too late.
There are also some things I chalk up to debut growing pains. Like early on when June's father asks if any of the girls play sports. June's friends Nia and Olive have been her friends for years. Nia's father is June’s father's best friend and law firm partner. Yet, he asks if they play sports at all? Why didn't he ask if they plan on continuing sports this year? Not egregious, but enough to raise an eyebrow.
Occasionally, the book feels out of step with what's popular with kids. Like the fairy godmother character Victoria is said to look a lot like Tracee Ellis Ross. I don't think kids care about Tracee Ellis Ross and will be way more likely to understand the reference if it just said ‘she looks like the mom from Blackish’ instead.
At one point, June talks about how great it was that her middle school got Jazmine Sullivan to perform at the carnival last year. This book came out in 2021. There weren't any contemporary RnB singers that would have fit better?
Plus, one of June's ways to combat the curse is to quickly type out her thoughts in a private blog. Not even a Tumblr blog, mind you, but an actual circa 2002 online diary. This was particularly out of touch as I don't think 11 year olds even know what blogging is nowadays unless explicitly informed (or using Tumblr, which doesn't operate like traditional blogging for most people anyways).
All of this could have been rectified if it was part of June's character to be old school, but she wasn't. She's very much concerned with not standing out, conforming, and people liking her.
Back to the curse, I did not like that it was so wishy washy. June initially gets around it by using the blog and not saying anything at all to dodge answering. Sometimes, that works, and then sometimes she's overwhelmed with the urge to sneeze or feels itchy. But that seems arbitrary based on how Wells wants the specific interaction to go. It would have been so much easier if it was, like I assumed it would be at first, June can only tell the truth and is physically incapable of lying. I also think that's just more fun to read about and leaves more room for shenanigans.
June's conflict with her parents was awful. June is worried that her parents won't love her if she tells the truth and expresses her real opinions. After spending the whole book finding ways to avoid it, she finally blows up at the Crab Shack, railing against them both for all the pressure on her.
Her father responds by giving her the silent treatment for days, and she is on punishment for two months for her disrespect. I get it. She was definitely rude. But, it was wild to me that rather than being deeply concerned with the contents of her outburst, her parents are most upset at her tone. In fact, despite part of her rant being about how she feels crushed by the weight of her responsibilities and how her father keeps pressuring her to do what he wants, her mother has to fight to keep her on the school paper, her one actual interest.
He was perfectly fine with her continuing field hockey even on punishment, but the school paper is just a distraction. And she's struggling in school from all her extracurriculars so much she received a horrible grade and their response was to place her on complete lockdown. They don't get her a tutor. They don't go in to talk to the school. They don't discuss therapy. They just conclude that isolation is the best way to punish her for….reaching her breaking point?
This is all in service of the plot point that telling the truth is necessary even when people get mad at you and that the truth can be told tactfully. Both important lessons, I agree. I just really wish that this could have been communicated from a warmer, less authoritarian perspective.
The book ends abruptly, with June still being cursed. She completely fulfilled her arc. She told everyone the truth. She understood why it was good. The only reason she is still cursed is so there can be a series. Which would be fine if everything hadn't been cleared up.
I love the message of Honest June. Kids really need to be taught that their happiness comes first sometimes and that it's okay to disappoint people if something isn't right for you. Unfortunately, this book is not executed well enough overall to ignore its fundamental flaws.
This does not necessarily have to be a bad thing. There's nothing wrong inherently with deciding that you want your book to have certain key elements or for a book to be crafted by a company. There are plenty of books that are fantastic that I'm sure were made in this manner or authors that seem genuine that are only doing it for the money. The difference is that Honest June doesn't have the quality to back up its checklist.
To be fair, it does find a more authentic groove as time passes, however, for many readers, I'm sure that will be too little too late.
There are also some things I chalk up to debut growing pains. Like early on when June's father asks if any of the girls play sports. June's friends Nia and Olive have been her friends for years. Nia's father is June’s father's best friend and law firm partner. Yet, he asks if they play sports at all? Why didn't he ask if they plan on continuing sports this year? Not egregious, but enough to raise an eyebrow.
Occasionally, the book feels out of step with what's popular with kids. Like the fairy godmother character Victoria is said to look a lot like Tracee Ellis Ross. I don't think kids care about Tracee Ellis Ross and will be way more likely to understand the reference if it just said ‘she looks like the mom from Blackish’ instead.
At one point, June talks about how great it was that her middle school got Jazmine Sullivan to perform at the carnival last year. This book came out in 2021. There weren't any contemporary RnB singers that would have fit better?
Plus, one of June's ways to combat the curse is to quickly type out her thoughts in a private blog. Not even a Tumblr blog, mind you, but an actual circa 2002 online diary. This was particularly out of touch as I don't think 11 year olds even know what blogging is nowadays unless explicitly informed (or using Tumblr, which doesn't operate like traditional blogging for most people anyways).
All of this could have been rectified if it was part of June's character to be old school, but she wasn't. She's very much concerned with not standing out, conforming, and people liking her.
Back to the curse, I did not like that it was so wishy washy. June initially gets around it by using the blog and not saying anything at all to dodge answering. Sometimes, that works, and then sometimes she's overwhelmed with the urge to sneeze or feels itchy. But that seems arbitrary based on how Wells wants the specific interaction to go. It would have been so much easier if it was, like I assumed it would be at first, June can only tell the truth and is physically incapable of lying. I also think that's just more fun to read about and leaves more room for shenanigans.
June's conflict with her parents was awful. June is worried that her parents won't love her if she tells the truth and expresses her real opinions. After spending the whole book finding ways to avoid it, she finally blows up at the Crab Shack, railing against them both for all the pressure on her.
Her father responds by giving her the silent treatment for days, and she is on punishment for two months for her disrespect. I get it. She was definitely rude. But, it was wild to me that rather than being deeply concerned with the contents of her outburst, her parents are most upset at her tone. In fact, despite part of her rant being about how she feels crushed by the weight of her responsibilities and how her father keeps pressuring her to do what he wants, her mother has to fight to keep her on the school paper, her one actual interest.
He was perfectly fine with her continuing field hockey even on punishment, but the school paper is just a distraction. And she's struggling in school from all her extracurriculars so much she received a horrible grade and their response was to place her on complete lockdown. They don't get her a tutor. They don't go in to talk to the school. They don't discuss therapy. They just conclude that isolation is the best way to punish her for….reaching her breaking point?
This is all in service of the plot point that telling the truth is necessary even when people get mad at you and that the truth can be told tactfully. Both important lessons, I agree. I just really wish that this could have been communicated from a warmer, less authoritarian perspective.
The book ends abruptly, with June still being cursed. She completely fulfilled her arc. She told everyone the truth. She understood why it was good. The only reason she is still cursed is so there can be a series. Which would be fine if everything hadn't been cleared up.
I love the message of Honest June. Kids really need to be taught that their happiness comes first sometimes and that it's okay to disappoint people if something isn't right for you. Unfortunately, this book is not executed well enough overall to ignore its fundamental flaws.
February 24, 2023
What does it say about me that *I* started feeling anxious during some of June’s more chaotic moments? Yikes.
Solid middle grade magical realism. I like that June changed over the course of the story, but not everything was resolved. No huge cliffhangers, but readers who enjoy the story will want back #2 right away.
Solid middle grade magical realism. I like that June changed over the course of the story, but not everything was resolved. No huge cliffhangers, but readers who enjoy the story will want back #2 right away.
March 25, 2023
4-4.5 stars
December 23, 2023
This was so cute! June was such a well-written (and relatable!) protagonist, even if the secondhand embarrassment was painful sometimes. I loved this story so much, and it should be in every middle school library. Very excited for the rest of the series <3
March 29, 2024
What a magical, wholesome read! June has always been a people-pleaser, telling harmless little lies to make her friends & family happy. She's convinced being honest about her feelings will only hurt the people she loves! Until, out of nowhere, a secret fairy godmother appears to "bless" her with the ability to only tell the truth! Seriously?! As if June didn’t have enough to worry about! Now, June has no choice but to be honest about how she feels. & the truth is: what June feels is stressed out. Middle school is no joke—between field hockey, friend drama, & her parents' high expectations, June feels so overwhelmed that sometimes it’s hard to breathe. When everything spirals out of control, will June find freedom in telling the whole truth & nothing but—or is she destined to battle the curse for the rest of her life? This was a fun whimsical read. June did slightly annoy me though, and I couldn’t understand why she stayed friends with one of her close ones. Her parents were another level of annoying though. Wowza. Parents like that are something else. Overall had a fun time. Beautiful cover by Brittney Bond also.💜
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June 10, 2023I love Honest June! It must be amazing meeting a fairy! 500/10!
December 23, 2021
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Honest June
Author: Tina Wells, Brittney Bond (Illustrator)
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Black MC with Anxiety, Black and BIPOC side characters
Recommended For...: middle grade readers, contemporary, magical realism
Publication Date: November 9, 2021
Genre: MG Contemporary Magical Realism
Recommended Age: 10+ (Bullying, Religion, Panic attack, anxiety, Disordered eating, Racism)
Explanation of CWs: There is bullying shown in the book. There is some religion mentioned and church going mentioned as well. There are two scenes with panic attacks shown. Anxiety is mentioned and shown. There is disordered eating shown in one scene, in which the father is inadvertently instilling it into the main character. There is also some racism mentioned as a past event and not to the main character, not shown.
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Pages: 240
Synopsis: June Jackson is an expert at exceeding people's expectations. She can't help it; she's a people-pleaser! She'll do everything she can to be the perfect student, daughter, and friend, even if it means ignoring her own feelings sometimes. Cue Victoria, June's secret fairy godmother, who blesses June with the ability to never tell a lie in the hopes that June will finally be honest with her loved ones. Instead of telling them the truth to their faces, June turns to a secret online blog--the only place she can write out her true feelings without hurting people.
When all of her responsibilities start to pile on--field hockey, the school paper, family responsibility, her friends--June begins feeling so overwhelmed that sometimes it feels hard to breathe. Not to mention June is desperately trying to figure out how to overthrow the spell at the same time! When the pressures reach new heights, will Honest June finally be able to break free and tell whole truth and nothing but?
Review: This is probably one of my favorite middle grade books of 2021! I absolutely loved the magical realism of this book (it’s small, but there) and I loved how the book normalized puberty and normalized stress. Stress is oftentimes treated as an unspoken concern in kids books, but this one tackled it head on. The book did well to highlight issues in the education system currently. It's really sad how far the education system has gone to where 6th graders are now thinking about college applications. Kids have enough pressure as is these days and school clubs and sports should be something they want to join for fun instead of something that they feel like they have to do in order to get into a good college. I also want to commend the author on making parents in a kids book that make mistakes. While I felt like punching the parents for my cinnamon role/main character June, I also only felt that way because the author wrote the book so well. No parent should be making their child feel inadequate or stressed because of college that's like at least 6 years away. The father in particular made me angry because he was taking the college issue too far, completely eliminating June’s choice and wants and desires, and going into a total control spree where, at one point in the novel, he was trying to control what his daughter eats and that leads to disordered eating. The characters are well developed, the world building is well done, and the story is wonderfully well written. The plot is also sound and the pacing is spot on. The book is also illustrated and is based in Atlanta!
The only real issues I had with the book is how the parents were written and how the author allowed them to punish the daughter after she finally told the truth about how she felt. The way that it was done in the book could make kids believe that they’ll be punished anyways for telling the truth. It should have been gone about a different way so kids reading the book would feel better about telling the truth to their parents. However, most of the blame is on the parents in the book and I hope that parents who read this book take notes from it.
Verdict: An absolutely well done book and a highly recommend from me!
Book: Honest June
Author: Tina Wells, Brittney Bond (Illustrator)
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Black MC with Anxiety, Black and BIPOC side characters
Recommended For...: middle grade readers, contemporary, magical realism
Publication Date: November 9, 2021
Genre: MG Contemporary Magical Realism
Recommended Age: 10+ (Bullying, Religion, Panic attack, anxiety, Disordered eating, Racism)
Explanation of CWs: There is bullying shown in the book. There is some religion mentioned and church going mentioned as well. There are two scenes with panic attacks shown. Anxiety is mentioned and shown. There is disordered eating shown in one scene, in which the father is inadvertently instilling it into the main character. There is also some racism mentioned as a past event and not to the main character, not shown.
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Pages: 240
Synopsis: June Jackson is an expert at exceeding people's expectations. She can't help it; she's a people-pleaser! She'll do everything she can to be the perfect student, daughter, and friend, even if it means ignoring her own feelings sometimes. Cue Victoria, June's secret fairy godmother, who blesses June with the ability to never tell a lie in the hopes that June will finally be honest with her loved ones. Instead of telling them the truth to their faces, June turns to a secret online blog--the only place she can write out her true feelings without hurting people.
When all of her responsibilities start to pile on--field hockey, the school paper, family responsibility, her friends--June begins feeling so overwhelmed that sometimes it feels hard to breathe. Not to mention June is desperately trying to figure out how to overthrow the spell at the same time! When the pressures reach new heights, will Honest June finally be able to break free and tell whole truth and nothing but?
Review: This is probably one of my favorite middle grade books of 2021! I absolutely loved the magical realism of this book (it’s small, but there) and I loved how the book normalized puberty and normalized stress. Stress is oftentimes treated as an unspoken concern in kids books, but this one tackled it head on. The book did well to highlight issues in the education system currently. It's really sad how far the education system has gone to where 6th graders are now thinking about college applications. Kids have enough pressure as is these days and school clubs and sports should be something they want to join for fun instead of something that they feel like they have to do in order to get into a good college. I also want to commend the author on making parents in a kids book that make mistakes. While I felt like punching the parents for my cinnamon role/main character June, I also only felt that way because the author wrote the book so well. No parent should be making their child feel inadequate or stressed because of college that's like at least 6 years away. The father in particular made me angry because he was taking the college issue too far, completely eliminating June’s choice and wants and desires, and going into a total control spree where, at one point in the novel, he was trying to control what his daughter eats and that leads to disordered eating. The characters are well developed, the world building is well done, and the story is wonderfully well written. The plot is also sound and the pacing is spot on. The book is also illustrated and is based in Atlanta!
The only real issues I had with the book is how the parents were written and how the author allowed them to punish the daughter after she finally told the truth about how she felt. The way that it was done in the book could make kids believe that they’ll be punished anyways for telling the truth. It should have been gone about a different way so kids reading the book would feel better about telling the truth to their parents. However, most of the blame is on the parents in the book and I hope that parents who read this book take notes from it.
Verdict: An absolutely well done book and a highly recommend from me!
December 19, 2022
I found "Honest June" by Tina Wells through The Brown Bookshelf blog. It does not have any awards but Kirkus reviewed it saying it is, "A novel with a valuable message about being true to yourself." June Jackson, the protagonist, is about to start middle school and has always tried to make everyone around her happy. This sometimes means omitting the truth or telling harmless lies like telling her mom she thought a skirt she picked out was cute when she actually thought, "It looked like what pre-schoolers in the Alps might wear as part of their school wardrobe." One night she meets a fairy godmother who puts a spell on her to only tell the truth. When this causes friction in her life, she turns to the internet to write an anonymous blog where she tells her truths. But eventually, this no longer helps ease the tension, and she tries everything she can to remove the spell. Read to find out if she finally tells the whole truth to people's faces. I gave this book 4 stars because of the interesting idea, realistic illustrations, and authentic cultural details. I think my middle school students can relate to the pressures June experiences in the book. One thing that my students are struggling with right now is having constant, immediate access to their grades and always wanting to have a perfect GPA. I did not give it 5 stars though because sometimes the constant lies at the beginning and her whining about the spell towards the end was a little much. I would recommend it to students who like the fantasy genre as a good multicultural, magical option. There are also 2 more books in the series, if students like the first book.
This is a great book to support diversity because the main character is Black. Her friends are Black as well. The author also includes authentic cultural details like "wash day" because she is Black too. While this is a chapter book/novel, there are some realistic half or full page illustrations. Sometimes the text is also written in a texting conversation format. Even though the illustrations are black and white, they remind me of graphic novel illustrations. I am glad I read the physical paper copy of the book so I could better appreciate the illustrations. I wonder why the illustrator chose to do them in black and white instead of full color.
"Honest June" is a level 720L, making it appropriate for students in 3rd-7th grade. I would not read the whole book with students. I would use specific chapters and have students make a pressure map, thinking about what things are putting pressure on the main character. I would also use specific chapters of the book to use as mentor texts during a narrative writing unit. I would use these mentor texts to show how the book is effectively written in 1st person. Through this perspective, I noticed the use of italicized internal thinking. This is something I am trying to teach students to add to their narratives and they are struggling a little bit so I think if they saw it in action, it might be easier to add to their own stories. I am glad I found this interesting text!
This is a great book to support diversity because the main character is Black. Her friends are Black as well. The author also includes authentic cultural details like "wash day" because she is Black too. While this is a chapter book/novel, there are some realistic half or full page illustrations. Sometimes the text is also written in a texting conversation format. Even though the illustrations are black and white, they remind me of graphic novel illustrations. I am glad I read the physical paper copy of the book so I could better appreciate the illustrations. I wonder why the illustrator chose to do them in black and white instead of full color.
"Honest June" is a level 720L, making it appropriate for students in 3rd-7th grade. I would not read the whole book with students. I would use specific chapters and have students make a pressure map, thinking about what things are putting pressure on the main character. I would also use specific chapters of the book to use as mentor texts during a narrative writing unit. I would use these mentor texts to show how the book is effectively written in 1st person. Through this perspective, I noticed the use of italicized internal thinking. This is something I am trying to teach students to add to their narratives and they are struggling a little bit so I think if they saw it in action, it might be easier to add to their own stories. I am glad I found this interesting text!
May 8, 2023
First sentence: I don't know everything about life yet, but I know at least one thing is true--life's easier when you make people happy.
Premise/plot: June may be starting sixth grade, but, her mother treats her like a toddler and her father treats her like an extension of himself. Since June is 100% a people pleaser, she only lives to make her parents happy--at some cost to her own happiness. Her father dictates her hobbies, her after school activities, her future career, etc. Her mother doesn't dictate the future so much as live in the past. (Like what kind of mom would pick out teddy bears eating pasta in a matching shirt/skirt combo for their kid to wear? Like I can't imagine it. As if that wasn't enough, we're supposed to believe the ensemble continues with ruffled socks. I just can't see this exaggeration helicopter mom existing.) June has her own friends....or does she?
June is "blessed" with a fairy godmother (of sorts) who uses her magical powers to make it so that June cannot lie. She has to tell the truth. (But does she really?) June's get-around in parts is to become evasive, disappear in tough situations, avoid and sidestep, and keep a BLOG (a blog seriously????) of her private confessions.
Her friendships may not survive the honesty treatment. And her relationship with her clueless parents may not either. Especially her father who has a rigid, my way or no way, zero tolerance level. Like speaking up and saying you don't want to play field hockey results in him throwing a temper tantrum for days, weeks, where he's too mad to talk to her and he reluctantly says I love you but I'm still mad at you. Like REALLY? SERIOUSLY???
My thoughts: There is very little emotional maturity in this middle grade fantasy. I don't expect the protagonist, the actual middle grader, to be emotionally mature and super-stable or extremely wise. But the parents in this one--especially the Dad--is RIDICULOUS.
I liked this one enough to keep reading. But I wasn't really sure if I was liking or loving what I was reading.
Premise/plot: June may be starting sixth grade, but, her mother treats her like a toddler and her father treats her like an extension of himself. Since June is 100% a people pleaser, she only lives to make her parents happy--at some cost to her own happiness. Her father dictates her hobbies, her after school activities, her future career, etc. Her mother doesn't dictate the future so much as live in the past. (Like what kind of mom would pick out teddy bears eating pasta in a matching shirt/skirt combo for their kid to wear? Like I can't imagine it. As if that wasn't enough, we're supposed to believe the ensemble continues with ruffled socks. I just can't see this exaggeration helicopter mom existing.) June has her own friends....or does she?
June is "blessed" with a fairy godmother (of sorts) who uses her magical powers to make it so that June cannot lie. She has to tell the truth. (But does she really?) June's get-around in parts is to become evasive, disappear in tough situations, avoid and sidestep, and keep a BLOG (a blog seriously????) of her private confessions.
Her friendships may not survive the honesty treatment. And her relationship with her clueless parents may not either. Especially her father who has a rigid, my way or no way, zero tolerance level. Like speaking up and saying you don't want to play field hockey results in him throwing a temper tantrum for days, weeks, where he's too mad to talk to her and he reluctantly says I love you but I'm still mad at you. Like REALLY? SERIOUSLY???
My thoughts: There is very little emotional maturity in this middle grade fantasy. I don't expect the protagonist, the actual middle grader, to be emotionally mature and super-stable or extremely wise. But the parents in this one--especially the Dad--is RIDICULOUS.
I liked this one enough to keep reading. But I wasn't really sure if I was liking or loving what I was reading.
April 18, 2023
I wanted to like this book a lot more than I did. I love the concept, and it did lead to some good conversations about respecting yourself and your needs and how making yourself into what you think others want denies them the chance to know the real you. Those were good opportunities.
It did feel like the language of the tweens was a bit forced, and the whole thing was very dramatic and overblown. I get that to some extent that was to illustrate the catastrophic thinking the main character had to learn to dismantle, but I was disappointed that by the end it was still there. It improved, but then it's like the author brought it back full force at the end to get you to read the next book. As a result, there was no real resolution to the story. June had started to learn the lesson but was still very much struggling with it; the book felt like it ended in the middle.
I also tend to assume that books are written for kids a few years younger than the protagonist. So a book about a sixth grader I thought would be targeted at a 4th or 5th grader. However, this book introduced a lot of things, presented as givens, that my graduating 5th grader does not yet think. Things like that no one would want to wear a shirt with characters on it because it IS babyish, presented as an absolute thing everyone knows by 6th grade and it being humiliating if others saw you in such clothes. My kid still loves those shirts, but now is self conscious about them. There were multiple things like that that were a bit frustrating; maybe true for many middle school and up kids but this book was written about a girl *starting* middle school. It also definitely made middle school seem like a scary, overwhelming, negative place.
A4 R4 K5
It did feel like the language of the tweens was a bit forced, and the whole thing was very dramatic and overblown. I get that to some extent that was to illustrate the catastrophic thinking the main character had to learn to dismantle, but I was disappointed that by the end it was still there. It improved, but then it's like the author brought it back full force at the end to get you to read the next book. As a result, there was no real resolution to the story. June had started to learn the lesson but was still very much struggling with it; the book felt like it ended in the middle.
I also tend to assume that books are written for kids a few years younger than the protagonist. So a book about a sixth grader I thought would be targeted at a 4th or 5th grader. However, this book introduced a lot of things, presented as givens, that my graduating 5th grader does not yet think. Things like that no one would want to wear a shirt with characters on it because it IS babyish, presented as an absolute thing everyone knows by 6th grade and it being humiliating if others saw you in such clothes. My kid still loves those shirts, but now is self conscious about them. There were multiple things like that that were a bit frustrating; maybe true for many middle school and up kids but this book was written about a girl *starting* middle school. It also definitely made middle school seem like a scary, overwhelming, negative place.
A4 R4 K5
January 8, 2023
Note: review is for audiobook edition narrated by Tyla Collier, which isn't listed on Goodreads.
I enjoyed this somewhat light middle grade magical realism take on a fairy Godmother who blesses the main character, June, with a gift that feels like a curse: the inability to lie. For a pathological people pleaser whose parents put huge amounts of pressure on her to conform to their expectations, June faces unwelcome adjustments to living her own truth, despite the fact that some of her feelings will hurt those around her. I call it "somewhat light", as the extent of the parental disappointment that June fights with her lies is justifiably frightening and awful.
At times, I found June to be over the top in being obnoxious at articulating her feelings...you can be truthful without being brutal or blurting unkindnesses; but the exaggerated contrast to her former attempts to please everyone makes some sense.
What I have enjoyed most about this book is not the book itself, but how eagerly my upper elementary school students have lunged for the book after I book-talk it; clearly, many students (especially girls) can relate to unrelenting parental pressure and identify themselves as people-pleasers, and they're eager to see how June's dilemma plays out.
This would be a great audiobook to listen to together in a long car ride between a parent and an upper elementary school student...many honest conversations could blossom from June's situations about parental expectations and how to foster honesty between parent and tween.
Recommended for elementary library collections.
I enjoyed this somewhat light middle grade magical realism take on a fairy Godmother who blesses the main character, June, with a gift that feels like a curse: the inability to lie. For a pathological people pleaser whose parents put huge amounts of pressure on her to conform to their expectations, June faces unwelcome adjustments to living her own truth, despite the fact that some of her feelings will hurt those around her. I call it "somewhat light", as the extent of the parental disappointment that June fights with her lies is justifiably frightening and awful.
At times, I found June to be over the top in being obnoxious at articulating her feelings...you can be truthful without being brutal or blurting unkindnesses; but the exaggerated contrast to her former attempts to please everyone makes some sense.
What I have enjoyed most about this book is not the book itself, but how eagerly my upper elementary school students have lunged for the book after I book-talk it; clearly, many students (especially girls) can relate to unrelenting parental pressure and identify themselves as people-pleasers, and they're eager to see how June's dilemma plays out.
This would be a great audiobook to listen to together in a long car ride between a parent and an upper elementary school student...many honest conversations could blossom from June's situations about parental expectations and how to foster honesty between parent and tween.
Recommended for elementary library collections.
January 2, 2022
First off I want to say a big thank you to TBR Tours & Beyond for yet again selecting me to review this book which I am truly grateful and have loved every minute working with you guys and to the publisher for sending me an Arc.
Let me introduce June who is about to start Middle School and want's to make an impact as well as making everyone around her happy at all costs. That is until her worst nightmare happens. I loved the main character of June and could see why she did what she did I also loved her interactions with her school friends. Their friendships were real and tangible and not like in some books where they are used for the background. I also felt the immense pressure June was under as both her parents were very successful and Tina showed this through her writing style. There was one particular scene which actually floored me and I was crying while I was reading and this due to Tina's handling of anxiety. She wrote so beautifully and was so on the money as I too as an adult suffer with both anxiety and depression so know what it feels like. There is one more character who plays an intricate part in the story but I am not going to say who they are as it would be a major spoiler and I don't do spoilers. I would love to see June again and see how she grows as a person. For all these reasons I have given Honest June 4 stars and can't wait to see what else Tina writes about.
Let me introduce June who is about to start Middle School and want's to make an impact as well as making everyone around her happy at all costs. That is until her worst nightmare happens. I loved the main character of June and could see why she did what she did I also loved her interactions with her school friends. Their friendships were real and tangible and not like in some books where they are used for the background. I also felt the immense pressure June was under as both her parents were very successful and Tina showed this through her writing style. There was one particular scene which actually floored me and I was crying while I was reading and this due to Tina's handling of anxiety. She wrote so beautifully and was so on the money as I too as an adult suffer with both anxiety and depression so know what it feels like. There is one more character who plays an intricate part in the story but I am not going to say who they are as it would be a major spoiler and I don't do spoilers. I would love to see June again and see how she grows as a person. For all these reasons I have given Honest June 4 stars and can't wait to see what else Tina writes about.
January 8, 2022
Sixth grader June is always focused on pleasing everyone around her. That means that she often tells white lies to impress and please her friends and family. However, her own feelings get pushed aside as she tries to make everyone else happy. One day, Victoria, June’s fairy godmother, arrives and puts a spell on June that forces her to tell the truth. She can no longer lie about liking her mother’s cooking or wanting to follow in her dad’s footsteps to become a lawyer. June tries to get around this by creating a private blog to type up the truth so that she doesn’t have to speak it. June must learn the importance of the truth so the spell can finally be lifted.
This story had an important message about telling the truth, that is for adults as well as children. It’s so easy to tell little white lies that end up snowballing into bigger lies. Even just saying “I’m fine,” when you aren’t, is a lie that June was caught up in a few times.
June felt a lot of pressure from her family to do well in school. Her father had her entire life planned out for her when she was eleven-years-old, but she didn’t know what she wanted to do in the future. This could be very relatable for many readers. Once she finally spoke the truth and talked to her parents about what was bothering her, she was able to begin to solve her problems.
Honest June is a great middle grade novel!
Thank you Random House Books for Young Readers and TBR and Beyond Tours for providing a copy of this book.
This story had an important message about telling the truth, that is for adults as well as children. It’s so easy to tell little white lies that end up snowballing into bigger lies. Even just saying “I’m fine,” when you aren’t, is a lie that June was caught up in a few times.
June felt a lot of pressure from her family to do well in school. Her father had her entire life planned out for her when she was eleven-years-old, but she didn’t know what she wanted to do in the future. This could be very relatable for many readers. Once she finally spoke the truth and talked to her parents about what was bothering her, she was able to begin to solve her problems.
Honest June is a great middle grade novel!
Thank you Random House Books for Young Readers and TBR and Beyond Tours for providing a copy of this book.
March 6, 2022
I know there are children who try so hard to work up to the expectations of their parents. The voice of the MC comes across as being casual, but the author did an excellent job or hinting at the true level of June’s anxiety and stress. I thought it was very realistic that she wouldn’t tell her parents how she felt, until it was required of her, and then burst out with the truth. Just telling the truth to a demanding parent can be stressful. And if you haven’t had practice doing that, it may come out forcefully the first couple of times. What I didn’t like was the temperament of the father. From the beginning of the story June was fearful of him and his reactions to her decisions. Then when she told him the truth, he gave her the silent treatment. I felt horrible for her. It bordered on feeling like emotional abuse. I don’t know why June apologized to the father, but he never apologized or explained why he gave her the silent treatment. I think the book normalized that behavior and it made me uncomfortable.
December 14, 2022
11yo June Jackson is a pleaser. She wants her parents to be proud, her friends to like her and her life to run smoothly. In order to do that, June finds herself telling half-truths, fibs, and even outright lies, because that's what she thinks others want to hear and to keep herself out of trouble. Until she is visited by a woman named Vanessa who claims to be her fairy godmother. Vanessa tells June that she needs to stop telling lies, and casts a spell on her which makes her completely honest with everyone. She will only remove the spell when June has learned her lesson and chooses the truth.
I loved this premise! Tina Wells covers many different levels of honesty - June isn't honest with her parents about the difficulty she is having doing all the things they expect, she hasn't been truthful with her friends when they do things that bother her, and she hasn't been truthful with herself. A fun beginning to a cute series. Most of the characters including June and her family are black.
Cross posted to http://kissthebook.blogspot.com
I loved this premise! Tina Wells covers many different levels of honesty - June isn't honest with her parents about the difficulty she is having doing all the things they expect, she hasn't been truthful with her friends when they do things that bother her, and she hasn't been truthful with herself. A fun beginning to a cute series. Most of the characters including June and her family are black.
Cross posted to http://kissthebook.blogspot.com
March 2, 2022
This was a really good start to a series. I relate to young June so much.
I love the portrayal of how hard people pleasing is. How it can set off unhealthy behaviors and it's better to tackle it as soon as you can.
Young June was STRUGGLING! She was lying too much (out of fear), and panic attacks ensued. Keeping up with the lies and everyone's expectations - #toomuch.
I love the way that telling the truth was used through a "fairy godmother."
This is great for younger readers but adults as well.
This could possibly help someone deal with a young one with similar behaviors as june. Hopefully this creates a level of compassion and empathy and a new understanding/perspective for anyone who picks this up and is unfamiliar with anxiety or pressures young kids may face.
Also, is miss June bi maybe?? If so that would be 🔥🔥. Did anyone else peep it?
"The truth is simple. The truth is easy. The truth is...me."
Would recommend!!
I love the portrayal of how hard people pleasing is. How it can set off unhealthy behaviors and it's better to tackle it as soon as you can.
Young June was STRUGGLING! She was lying too much (out of fear), and panic attacks ensued. Keeping up with the lies and everyone's expectations - #toomuch.
I love the way that telling the truth was used through a "fairy godmother."
This is great for younger readers but adults as well.
This could possibly help someone deal with a young one with similar behaviors as june. Hopefully this creates a level of compassion and empathy and a new understanding/perspective for anyone who picks this up and is unfamiliar with anxiety or pressures young kids may face.
Also, is miss June bi maybe?? If so that would be 🔥🔥. Did anyone else peep it?
"The truth is simple. The truth is easy. The truth is...me."
Would recommend!!
March 8, 2022
2.5 stars, rounded up.
This went on way too long, without enough substance to justify its page count. I liked the premise, but I ended up skimming a lot, since I found that I could do so without missing anything. The first-person narrative voice feels authentic, and the author did a good job getting into the mind of a middle school girl as she deals with people-pleasing and social pressure, but the story is episodic and repetitive. It could have been half the length.
Even though I was disappointed in this from a personal perspective, I will still recommend it to readers who are the target age for it. As a kid, I probably would have been way more absorbed by this, since so many of the social dynamics and internal struggles would have been new to me at the time. Still, I hope that future installments in the series will have stronger, better-paced plots and more character development.
This went on way too long, without enough substance to justify its page count. I liked the premise, but I ended up skimming a lot, since I found that I could do so without missing anything. The first-person narrative voice feels authentic, and the author did a good job getting into the mind of a middle school girl as she deals with people-pleasing and social pressure, but the story is episodic and repetitive. It could have been half the length.
Even though I was disappointed in this from a personal perspective, I will still recommend it to readers who are the target age for it. As a kid, I probably would have been way more absorbed by this, since so many of the social dynamics and internal struggles would have been new to me at the time. Still, I hope that future installments in the series will have stronger, better-paced plots and more character development.
March 20, 2022
June is a people pleaser who will do and say anything to make the people around her happy and to keep the peace. When her fairy godmother arrives on the scene she grants June the ability to only tell the truth, quite the curse in June's case. June learns that the truth will come out and it isn't as bad as she once thought.
Overall, this was a cute story. It's a bit longer than it needed to be and the moral/message is hammered a bit hard in my opinion. I do think June is a likable character and many kids will relate to her anxiety about disappointing the people around her, though perhaps not to the same extreme. June's parents bothered me because they were clearly out of touch with their daughter and her feelings. I know their actions were exaggerated to drive home the moral of the story, but they felt a little overdone.
Overall, this was a cute story. It's a bit longer than it needed to be and the moral/message is hammered a bit hard in my opinion. I do think June is a likable character and many kids will relate to her anxiety about disappointing the people around her, though perhaps not to the same extreme. June's parents bothered me because they were clearly out of touch with their daughter and her feelings. I know their actions were exaggerated to drive home the moral of the story, but they felt a little overdone.
December 28, 2021
Fairy godmother bestowing a gift that feels more like a curse? I'm in! June's not a bad person and her lies are not being told for her own gain, but she does lie an awful lot. June believes her lies are making her life easier by stopping conflict with friends and family, but she doesn't see the toll her need to please everyone else is taking on her own mental state. Honest June provides a light take on a more serious subject as our protagonist works to overcome her fears about the consequences of telling people the truth. Sure, there's some fallout as June finds her own voice, but it's not as dire as she has imagined. A good middle grades book.
January 16, 2022
Honest June is about a girl named June who lives her life to please everyone around her. She constantly tells lies so she won't upset anyone. When a fairy godmother casts a spell on her that makes her only tell the truth, she is in for a wild ride that shakes up her whole world.
I think this a cute book that would be very relatable to young people pleasers. It was maybe a smidge heavy-handed at times hitting you over the head with the moral of the story. Overall it was enjoyable and would be a great read for any kids struggling with becoming their own person.
I think this a cute book that would be very relatable to young people pleasers. It was maybe a smidge heavy-handed at times hitting you over the head with the moral of the story. Overall it was enjoyable and would be a great read for any kids struggling with becoming their own person.
August 7, 2023
This book really made me feel what June was feeling (maybe because I've had similar feelings) Honest June is about a girl who lies to keep people happy. She believes if she tells the truth her friends and family won't love her anymore. One day a mysterious 'fairy godmother' shows up and blesses/curses June to only tell the truth. The way June deals with her issues and works through her problems is very cool, I love this character and I feel like we'd be good friends 😀.
(Needless to say I'm going to read the rest of the series!)
(Needless to say I'm going to read the rest of the series!)
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