Thea and the Mischief Makers

Badua, Tracy. Thea and the Mischief Makers

October 15, 2024 by Clarion 

E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus

Thea has transferred from her public middle school to the private Pacific Academy. She has enjoyed her new surroundings, and is known as a cool, fearless athlete for her success in Brazilian jiu jitzu. She misses her grandfather, who passed away two years ago, and who was a staunch supporter of her athletic endeavors. She's starting the summer taking a two week Stunt Warrior Camp, but is somewhat dismayed that her old best friend, Evan is there. Evan is geeky, outspoken, and has witnessed her fear of heights, that led to an embarrassing incident at her old school. Rex and Brooklyn from Pacific are at the summer camp as well, and she doesn't want to embarrass herself in front of them and ruin her reputation at school. When she finds out that her mother has planned to have Evan at camp AND to hang out at their house afterwards, she's not happy. She and Evan plan on building a mini obstacle course in the back yard. Her father earns her to be careful, especially of the calamansi trees in the backyard, because her grandfather always claimed there were duwendes, Filipino folklore goblins, that lived there. Thea pauses, but then decides it's ridiculous, and lops a branch off one of the trees. That night, she sees two duwendes in her room, and they crash her bookcase, saying that she has one week to make up for her disrespect of they will destroy her entire town. Thea apologizes, but duwendes Dante says an apology consists of authentic words, offering, and heart, and both he and his sister Dora agree that Thea is not sincere enough. Since the neighbors were also affected, Thea knows she needs to do something, but isn't quite sure what. When Evan sees the duwendes, he is excited, because there are similar beings in one of his video games, and he offers to help. The two give Dora some microwaveable Mac and cheese, and she softens up and forgives Thea. Dante still needs to, and Dora warns that he is a vengeful trickster who caused the destruction of an entire island, and that's why the two came to California. Dora is less thrilled by the gold earrings that Thea offers her, saying that Thea is stereotyping magical beings. At the camp, Thea is still figuring out how to deal with her fear of heights in some of the stunts that they try, and worrying that REx and Brooklyn think Evan is uncool. She starts to realize that maybe she isn't as nice to others at school as she should be. When Dora tells Thea that what Dante would really like is his solokot (hat) that was stolen from him at the port when they arrived, she and Evan discuss how to find it, and Evan brings Rex and Brooklyn into the discussion! Thea is mortified, but the four manage to find the hat being used at a candy dish in an office in Long Beach by looking at video camera pictures, and plan a way to take rental scooters to the dock. When they get there, however, they find that the office is in a secured area, and they have to use their stunt skills to break in. They get the hat, and narrowly escape when Evan distracts the guard with a pop-and-Mentos bomb! When Dante says that the hat is not enough, Dora steps in and tells him he needs to stop. They have a heart to heart about the purpose of duwendes and consequences of past actions, and Dante says he wants to go back to the Philippines and apologize, while Dora wants to stay and learn about humans... and eat their mac and cheese! Thea finally stands up to Rex and Brooklyn about how they treat Evan, and the two cool kids admit that they, too, have weaknesses. Thea tells them that it's "okay if you're not who everyone expects you to be", and the four are able to go forward as better friends and human beings. 

Strengths: This was a particularly well paced tale, alternating between the stress of the duwendes and the problems at stunt camp, so that the more emotional philosophy is broken up by the comic relief provided by Dora. The friend drama is spot on, but I loved that Thea feels she IS cool at her new school. Nearly every middle grade fiction book is from the perspective of the downtrodden, geeky character, which gets old after a while. There's just enough about Thea's grandfather and her Filippino heritage to add another layer of interest. The other intriguing thing about this was that Evan didn't really care about what anyone else thought. That kind of character could be added to a lot more books. The rescue of the hat is a little improbable, but gives a nice heist feel to the book, and well as the very funny mental image of the four escaping on rental scooters! Teachers and librarians who are big on Social Emotional Learning will appreciate the unpacking at the end. 
Weaknesses: Breaking into the office isn't a great idea, and seemed a little unlikely, but it is a really good scene. While the emotional issues are solidly middle school ones, I can see this being even more popular with fourth graders who want to read about older characters and are still a little more open to magical creatures. Eighth graders, who would enjoy the discussions of popularity, might not pick this up because of the duwendes. (Althought they should!)
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who enjoyed Ahn's A Spoonful of Time, Cuevas' The Ghosts of Ranch Espanto, Hackney's The Sisters of Luna Island, or Meriano's Love. Sugar. Magic. series. It's a nice mix of fantasy, adventure, and soul searching.