Children's ✦ Penny’s Take
Hazel’s Theory of Evolution
Lisa Jenn Bigelow · 2019
74/100
👍 Worth It
A Lambda Award-winning middle-grade novel with a genuinely likable protagonist, strong craft, and a hopeful tone even when it's dealing with real emotional weight — miscarriage, new school anxiety, unexpected friendship. Kirkus, Booklist, and School Library Journal all praised it, which is meaningful. Faith-conservative families should know that Hazel's two moms and her transgender classmate are central to the story, not background details, so this one requires a real look before handing to a child.
✦ Penny’s Take — this is The Review Group’s own editorial assessment. Penny’s analytical review line researched this book from real sources and scored it across the lenses shown below. It’s an honest first-party read — not a page-by-page personal one. The gold ✓ Penny Tested mark is reserved for books Penny reads cover to cover herself.
⚠ Parent note — our reviewers flagged: LGBTQ+ themes are central: same-sex parents, transgender character, asexual/aromantic protagonist — not peripheral; faith-conservative families should preview before purchasing. We still scored it 74; these are context for your family, not an automatic skip.
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Show the math
Verdict receipt0–100
safety60
substance78
craft82
originality76
accuracy80
hype72
age-fit78
human-eye80
Penny’s verdict74
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