Fish in a Tree

Things begin to change when Mr. Daniels arrives as a substitute and notices that Ally's problems are not about effort. He starts working with her after school, and slowly she discovers that she has dyslexia and that her mind works in surprising, creative ways. Along the way she forms a friendship with Keisha, who is fearless, and Albert, a brilliant boy who wears the same shirt every day, and together they learn to stand up to the class's sharp-tongued mean girl.

Hunt was once a teacher, and it shows in the details: the shame of reading aloud, the relief of a kind word, the way a classroom can feel like a battlefield or a refuge. The book is gentle but honest, and Ally's sketchbook of impossible things is a lovely touch. Several moments will make adults reading along a little misty-eyed.

The bully is somewhat one-note and the ending is tidy, but the core message, that everyone is smart in their own way, is delivered with real warmth. The paperback also includes discussion questions that make it a good choice for classrooms and book clubs. About 320 pages in the Puffin paperback.