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melons614's review against another edition
4.0
A nice little middle grade book about feelings and the downsides of toxic positivity. The writing definitely felt like it was for a younger audience but the story was pretty universal. It was a good way to physically represent feelings and how people can have a tendency to hide the bad ones.
buffalojenn's review against another edition
5.0
Abby Cooper has cooked up another spectacular middle grade story with a hint of magic, perfect for fans of her earlier books. Everything in Serenity, MN is serene... on the surface, at least. But things get shaken up when a documentarian comes to town and our protagonist Mackenzie's haze (you know, the way with some people, their feelings show up as a multi-colored aura around them) explodes onto other townsfolk. Oops! Cooper smartly explores the cult of toxic positivity still pervasive in the American culture as Mackenzie comes to terms with the wide range of feelings that not just she but . . . *all* of us have. This engaging story has massive appeal for upper elementary students and at just over 200 pages and with social media interstitials, it's accessible for a wide range of readers in a time when our attention spans are all a little, well, shorter than they used to be. Would make a great read-aloud or book club selection.
ahappyhof's review
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
oldandnewbooksmell's review
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
In Serenity, Minnesota, everyone agrees to think positively and always look at the bright side of things. For twelve-year-old Mackenzie, who has the rare gift of her emotions showing as a colorful haze around her, this town is the promise of never having to deal with bullies. But when a documentary team comes to town and starts asking questions, Mackenzie gets overwhelmed and explodes - giving everyone in town their own haze. As Mackenzie learns that she’s really not the only person who struggles with being happy all the time, the whole town must figure out how to go forward when their true colors are on display for all.
This book has aspects of magical realism in it. Through reading, this novel teaches middle schoolers how to acknowledge their feelings and emotions and how to process through them. It also teaches that even though someone may look happy on the outside, they may be dealing with all sorts of emotions on the inside.
This story was mostly told through Mackenzie’s point of view, but also included messages and chat board discussions between the Serenity adults. There were also members of the community as if it was their interview section in the documentary.
I loved how Mackenzie named her colors, usually candy or bakery themed. And when she was learning about all the types of emotions that didn’t really have names in English, but did in other languages.
Overall, I would highly recommend this to preteens. It also has good discussion points I feel like for a classroom read as well. I think adults would get a kick out of it simply for the naming of colors to emotions, cause yea - sometimes you may feel worried watermelon or anxious apricot.
neffcannon's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
heidisreads's review
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Fantastically awesome and wonderful! True Colors by Abby Cooper is a story about a girl who can't hide her feelings - no matter how hard she tries - like her feelings are displayed in a colorful haze around her body - and what happens when you do hold your feelings in and how it affects other people. I'd hand this to readers of Starfish (Lisa Fipps), Fighting Words (Kimberly Brubaker Bradley), Out of My Mind (Sharon Draper), Counting By 7s (Holly Goldberg Sloan) ...
eyeleash's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
lessa_riel's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
yapha's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a great introduction to dystopian fiction for young readers, like a "dystopian light." Mackenzie's parents moved them to Serenity, a town where everything is fine and everyone is happy, after she was treated badly at school due to the colorful haze around her body that shows her emotions. Since her emotions can be seen by everyone, she works really hard to always keep them a happy yellow, as seems to be required by the town. She's managing fine until a documentary maker and her daughter come to town and start asking questions that no one asks each other. A good look at feelings and how we can each contain multitudes of seemingly contradictory feelings. Highly recommended for grades 4 & up.
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss