Children's ✦ Penny’s Take
The Other Half of Happy
Rebecca Balcárcel · 2019
85/100
👍 Worth It
Starred reviews from both Kirkus and Booklist, a Pura Belpré Honor, and a Texas Institute of Letters prize — that's a real track record for a debut. Balcárcel's free verse is accessible rather than showy, and her portrait of bicultural tween life is among the most emotionally honest in recent middle grade. Families with conservative LGBTQ views should know a gay supporting character appears, handled without any graphic content.
✦ 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
safety76
substance84
craft88
originality82
accuracy85
hype80
age-fit86
human-eye86
Penny’s verdict85
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