Children's ✦ Penny’s Take
The New Friend
Charlotte Zolotow · 2021
76/100
👍 Worth It
Charlotte Zolotow's 1968 text about the quiet heartbreak of watching a close friend walk away with someone new is emotionally honest in the way only the best children's books manage, and Benjamin Chaud's richly colored 2021 illustrations give it fresh life. It won't work for every reading moment — this is a melancholy book — but for a child navigating real friendship pain it could be exactly right. A thoughtful, Kirkus-honored reissue.
✦ 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.
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Show the math
Verdict receipt0–100
safety98
substance72
craft82
originality75
accuracy88
hype70
age-fit78
human-eye80
Penny’s verdict76
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