I listened to this as an audiobook, and I'm so thrilled that I did. I've been a longtime fan of Kate DiCamillo, but it's been years since I read a middle-grade book. I have to admit that the cover is what initially caught my attention. It's beautifully minimal, with a young girl standing in the water holding a baton.

This book made me feel things. It was very sad but very beautiful. Jenna Lamia did an incredible job giving distinctive voices to each of the characters. She made me fall in love with Louisiana Elefante, who might be one of my favorite characters out of all the books I've read this year.

This is the story of a trio of girls who form an unlikely but incredible friendship. Each girl plans to compete in a beauty pageant for their own reasons. They meet at a baton-twirling class, and the story goes on from there.