Series are popular with readers of all ages. This column features first books in new series, a sequel, the latest books in episodic series that can be read in any order, and the final book in a popular trilogy. We include reviews of a book from a new beginning readers series, some chapter books with interesting characters for early readers, and books with complex plots in a variety of genres for older readers.

Ages 4–8

Absolutely Alfie and the Worst Best Sleepover (Absolutely Alfie #3). Sally Warner. Ill. Shearry Malone. 2018. Viking/Penguin.

All the second-grade girls at Oak Glen Primary School are aflutter as Lulu Marino whispers her plans for “the best sleepover ever.” Her mother, however, has said she can invite only six girls. Alfleta “Alfie” Jakes and Lulu used to be best friends, and Alfie desperately wants to be invited to the sleepover. It’s a school rule that you should ask everyone in the class if you have a party, and Alfie is troubled that six girls (probably including her) will be left out. Should she say something or stay silent and hope to be one of the chosen girls? As things get out of hand and parents become involved, Lulu’s sleepover is cancelled. But you can absolutely count on Alfie to set things right. With the help of her family, Alfie hosts “the Saturday Morning Jammie Breakfast Party” with all the girls invited and Lulu as the honored guest.
—CA

Hi, Jack! (A Jack Book #1). Mac Barnett. Ill. Greg Pizzoli. 2018. Viking/Penguin.

A mischievous monkey named Jack snatches a purse from an elderly lady, named the Lady. Jack returns the purse, but keeps a lipstick. He uses it to put red lips and his name on a dog named Rex, and then to write Jack all over the Lady’s white walls. “Jack! Bad Jack!” Finally, the Lady retrieves her lipstick by making a clever trade with Jack that ends with kisses all around. With three short chapters, one or two lines of text on a page, simple vocabulary, repetition of sentence structure, and colorful cartoon illustrations, this is a fun first reader. Adding to the fun are pages with step-by-step instructions for drawing Jack, Rex, and the Lady. Beginning readers can move on to simultaneously published Jack at Bat. Two more books in the series, Jack Blasts Off and Jack Goes West, will be released next January.
—NB 

The Uncanny Express (The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters #2). Kara LaReau. Ill. Jen Hill. 2018. Amulet/Abrams.

Having survived kidnapping by a band of female pirates in The Jolly Regina (2017), the Bland sisters, Jaundice and Kale, are content to be back in Dullsville pursuing their bland routine. When a letter from their long-absent parents arrives telling them to meet Aunt Shallot at the Dullsville Station, however, they become involved in another adventure as they are hurried aboard the departing express train for Uncanny Valley. When Magique (aka Aunt Shallot) disappears, Jaundice and Kale find themselves assisting rotund, mustached Hugo Fromage, the Great Detective, in interviewing a train car full of suspects to solve a complicated mystery. LaReau playfully (and intentionally) fills the Bland sister’s unintentional adventure aboard the Uncanny Express with parallels to Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express. In the final chapter, upon their arrival back in Dullsville, Jaundice and Kale find their home ransacked. Who would do this? And why? The arrival of another letter from their parents provides a clue—and sets the Bland sisters up for another unintentional adventure.
—CA

Ages 9–11

Avalanche! (Survivor Diaries). Terry Lynn Johnson. Ill. Jani Orban. 2018. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Twelve-year-old Ashley Hilder’s twin brother Ryan has always been the one who makes the big decisions—until they are caught in an avalanche on Colt Summit in Wyoming’s Teton Mountains. Separated from their parents, who are unaware that the twins are trapped at the bottom of a gorge, Ashley (with a sprained knee) rescues her brother, who has been buried in the avalanche only to discover that the big bump on his head has given him amnesia and that he is developing frostbite on his toes. Ashley must overcome self-doubts and insecurities to take the lead if they are to survive injuries and encounters with a wolverine and a bear in the harsh wilderness. Back matter includes an author’s note with avalanche and wilderness safety tips. Readers will be drawn into this thrilling new adventure in the Survivor Diaries series.
—NB

Best Buds Under Frogs (The Rizzlerunk Club #1). Leslie Patricelli. 2018. Candlewick.

Shy Lily Lattuga’s disastrous first day in fourth grade at a new school involves barfing on the four-square court after being invited to play with the Jilly Beans (the popular girls in the class) at recess. Lily does make friends with weird classmate Darby Dorski. Since neither is welcomed into the Jilly Beans, they form their own two-member club, the Rizzlerunks, and with their shared interest in frogs, they pledge to be “best buds, under frogs, with loyalty and honesty for all.” All goes well until Darby’s former best friend, bossy and manipulative Jill Johnson, returns from London, declares herself Queen of the Rizzlerunks, and begins to mastermind brilliant pranks that get Lily and Darby in trouble. Patricelli adds lots of black-and-white cartoon illustrations to this funny “survival” story of frogs and friendship.
—CA

Mez’s Magic (Lost Rainforest #1). Eliot Schrefer. Ill. Emilia Dziubak. 2018. Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins.

In the magical rainforest of Caldera, there are some animals that can “cross the Veil” and be active during both night and day. Mez, a calico panther, is one of these special animals. Auriel, a boa constrictor, identifies Mez as a “shadowwalker,” an eclipse-born animal with the powers of the sun and the moon. Although she knows she doesn’t have any magical powers, Mez is convinced by Auriel that it is her destiny to join the other shadowwalkers he is gathering to keep the Ant Queen from awakening from her imprisonment beneath the ancient Ziggurat of the Sun and the Moon and once again conquering Caldera. In this fast-paced fantasy adventure, full of danger, treachery, and surprising plot twists, Mez discovers her special power and works with Lima (a bat with healing powers), Rumi (a tree frog who can control wind), and Gogi (a capuchin monkey with the power of fire), and other shadowwalkers to solve the riddle of the ziggurat to save Caldera.
—CA

The Terrible Two Go Wild (The Terrible Two #3). Mac Barnett & Jory John. Ill. Kevin Cornell. 2018. Amulet/Abrams.

School is out, and Miles and Niles (best friends and founders of the International Order of Disorder) are performing pranks with finesse and running free and wild in the woods near the Yawnee Valley Yelling and Push-Ups Camp (for troubled tweens), which is in session for summer. Miles and Niles have planned the best pranks ever for YVYPUC’s Papa Company, led by bully Josh Barkin (their principal’s son), who sends minions Mudflap and Dugout to do his bidding. War is declared when Papa Company loses its flag to Miles and Niles, and the pranks are on! When Niles is kidnapped by Papa Company and stashed in their cabin, he discovers “ammunition” for the best prank of all times, a fitting conclusion to the Terrible Two’s hilarious summer of fun. Cornell’s black-and-white cartoon-like line drawings add a hoot to this laugh-out-loud story.
—NB

Ages 12–14

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: 2 Fuzzy, 2 Furious (Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #2). Shannon Hale & Dean Hale. 2018. Marvel/Disney.

Doreen Green has the challenge of balancing life as a middle-school student in Shady Hills with her secret Marvel Superhero Squirrel Girl persona. After foiling the amateur Super Villain in the series opener, Squirrel Meets World (2018), things heat up when a new mall is scheduled to open on the border of Shady Hills and Listless Pines—and the two towns are inexplicably drawn into a war over naming the mall mascot. With the help of hearing-challenged Ana Sofía, her BHFF (Best Human Friend Forever), Squirrel Girl must unveil the nefarious scheme of the evil cabal infiltrating her community (evil dogling army, psycho kitties, Hydra minions, and Lizard Brain with violence-triggering pheromones). Quite the challenge for the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl.
—NB

Ages 15+

The True Queen (The Imposter Queen #3). Sarah Fine. 2018. Margaret K. McElderry/Simon & Schuster.

In the final book in this fantasy trilogy, the lives of Elli, the “imposter queen” of book one, and Ansa, the “cursed queen” of book two, intertwine as Kupari is literally crumbling into the earth. Elli was chosen to succeed the Valtia of Kupari, but did not inherit the queen’s magic of ice and fire (although she does have the magical attribute of balancing the magic of others). Ansa, who was kidnapped from Kupari by the Krigere as a child, has the violent, uncontrollable magic gift of ice and fire that marks her as a queen but endangers the lives of all around her. Ansa is looking for a home in Kupari for her refugee Krigere people. Both young women have been betrayed and manipulated by trusted mentors, have lost their soul mates, and have untapped power and strength leading them toward their destiny. In a head-on collision course with each other, they might find an unexpected solution to the question of which queen will save Kapuri.
—NB  

Nancy Brashear is Professor Emeritus of English at Azusa Pacific University, in Azusa, California. Carolyn Angus is former Director of the George G. Stone Center for Children's Books, Claremont Graduate University, in Claremont, California

These reviews are submitted by members of the International Literacy Association's Children's Literature and Reading Special Interest Group (CL/R SIG) and are published weekly on Literacy Daily.