Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 01/01/2022 *Starred Review* Abrams, former member of the Georgia House of Representatives, longtime voting-rights activist, and best-selling author here focuses on her childhood fascination with words and her realization of how powerful they can be, using a grade school spelling bee to anchor a lesson in perseverance. Abrams’ fictional story—inspired by how she lost her first spelling bee by one word, and what that loss, and her later comeback victory, taught her—is both exciting and relatable (little Stacey finds words and reading a refuge when she feels awkward, out-of-place, or has been bullied). The digital illustrations highlight the nervous drama of a spelling bee, while the hand lettering throughout makes Stacey’s favorite words look vibrant and exciting. In the first bee, the class bully wins by a word, but Stacey wins in her own way by giving a polite but crushing comment, learning that words can be used to speak up for others. After the defeat, Stacey’s mother reminds her of an important word, “perseverance,” which becomes Stacey’s comeback word, until she finally wins a bee three years later. Charming and powerful. - Copyright 2022 Booklist.