Children's ✦ Penny’s Take
The Science of Friendship
Tanita S. Davis · 2024
81/100
👍 Worth It
A Kirkus-starred 2024 middle-grade that earns its praise by weaving actual social science into a coming-of-age friendship story — not as window dressing but as part of the plot. Redeemed Reader approved, endorsed by the Chicago Public Library, and built for exactly the 9-13 audience navigating the social complexity of middle school. A genuinely useful read.
✦ 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
Faith & family safety87
Substance / usefulness78
Craft & writing82
Originality72
Evidence & accuracy84
Hype vs delivers81
Age-fit88
👁 Human-eye gut-check75
Penny’s verdict81
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