Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina

Reviewed by Wanruo 

Merci Suárez is a sixth grader at Seaward Pines Academy. Unlike the other students at her school, she does not live in a big house or take fancy vacations. Merci is a scholarship student who lives with her family in three little houses they call Las Casitas. Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina is about how Merci solves her problems at school and shows her family that she is not a kid anymore.

During sixth grade, everything seems different for Merci. At school, queen bee Edna Santos has her eyes set on Merci’s Sunshine Buddy, Michael Clark. At home, Merci’s abuelo, Lolo, is acting strange, but no one will tell Merci what is going on. Life gets harder as Lolo gets worse, and school becomes tough. Will Merci be able to stay strong through these hard times?

One reason why I liked this book is because it has a lot of emotions. Sometimes, Merci is angry at how she needs to babysit her young cousins, while other times, she is frightened at the way Lolo acts. Just as she starts to calm down, something makes Merci's feelings burn again, either in school, when Edna’s jealousy causes problems, or at home, where she feels like she is being treated like a baby.

Another reason why this book was so captivating was because of the conflicts. At first, Merci is just dealing with school, specifically, trying to fit in. Then, problems start to rise at home, like when Lolo goes crazy and when Merci feels it is unfair that she always needs to babysit her cousins. This leaves Merci feeling alone and stranded, but her friends at school and her family show that she is surrounded by people who care for her.

I would recommend this book to people who enjoy coming-of-age books, and I would rate this book a 10/10 because I personally like to read books that are about kids and real life, and what they go through. There is another book called Merci Suárez Can’t Dance by Meg Medina which is a sequel to Merci Suárez Changes Gears. Make sure to read both books! Go check out Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina at your local school library today.

Candlewick Press, 355 pages