Surely Surely Marisol Rainey

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Author(s)

Erin Entrada Kelly

Publisher

Greenwillow Books

Genre(s)

Age Range

Release Date

August 09, 2022

ISBN

978-0062970459

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Marisol Rainey’s two least-favorite things are radishes and gym class. She avoids radishes with very little trouble, but gym is another story—especially when Coach Decker announces that they will be learning to play kickball.

There are so many things that can go wrong in kickball. What if Marisol tries to kick the ball . . . but falls down? What if she tries to catch the ball and gets smacked in the nose? What if she’s the worst kickballer in the history of kickball? Marisol and her best friend Jada decide to get help from the most unlikely—and most annoying—athlete in the world: Marisol’s big brother, Oz.

Told in short chapters with illustrations by the author on almost every page, Erin Entrada Kelly’s stand-alone companion novel to Maybe Maybe Marisol Rainey celebrates the small but mighty Marisol, the joys of friendship, the power of being different, and the triumph of persevering. Surely Surely Marisol Rainey is ideal for readers of Kevin Henkes, Meg Medina, Judy Blume, and Beverly Cleary.

Editor review

1 review

Family, Friends, and Anxiety

October 29, 2022

Overall rating

4.0

Plot

4.0

Characters

4.0

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

4.0

‘Surely Surely Marisol Rainey’ by Erin Entrada Kelly follows Marisol and her best friend, Jada, as they try to navigate the perils of elementary school gym. The fact that they have to play kickball is not something Marisol wants to remember, but lo and behold, her gym teacher is dedicating two weeks to the game, and Marisol doesn’t know how to handle it. Her dad is away at work, and she doesn’t really want to ask her brother, Oz, for help. He’s the ultimate athlete, in her opinion, and she knows she can’t possibly do as well as him. Adding to her misery as she thinks about how she’ll have to play kickball is the fact that a girl named Evie is always making fun of her and thinking she’ll fail.

Despite Marisol’s best efforts to do well, things don’t always go her way, and she embarrasses herself more than once. However, her best friend sticks by her and her brother steps up in a way that she didn’t expect. When she finds that things aren’t going so well, she lashes out, but when she realizes that people are on her side and that relaxing helps her begin to do somewhat better, she finds that everything that has upset her in the past isn’t really all that bad.

With lots of family, friendship, and anxiety, Marisol works through some of her issues, and along the way, she even learns she might be able to talk to animals. The story will touch readers who have ever been unsure of themselves in one way or another and will make them think that they, too, can have things work out their way if they just put their minds to thinking positively and encouraging themselves to succeed.

Good Points

With lots of family, friendship, and anxiety, Marisol works through some of her issues, and along the way, she even learns she might be able to talk to animals. The story will touch readers who have ever been unsure of themselves in one way or another and will make them think that they, too, can have things work out their way if they just put their minds to thinking positively and encouraging themselves to succeed.