Nikki and Deja: Substitute Trouble
Nikki and Deja feel adrift in their familiar classroom after their beloved teacher breaks her ankle and stays home for a few weeks. The first substitute, a kindly fellow, can’t control the class. Though the second sub keeps everyone in line with drill sergeant–like discipline, he does little actual teaching. English sympathetically captures Deja and Nikki’s uneasiness when their school days go off-kilter, and no solution is in sight. Distinctive black-and-white illustrations reflect the actions and the tone of this clearly written story. Another slice of elementary-school life in the Nikki and Deja chapter-book series, one of the few to feature African American characters. Grades 2-4. --Carolyn Phelan