The League of Unexceptional Children (The League of Unexceptional Children, 1) - Softcover

Gitty Daneshvari is the author of the middle grade series School of Fear and the Monster High: Ghoulfriends. At the ripe old age of ten, a school IQ test determined she was neither gifted nor talented. Decades later, Gitty realized that more important than being "talented" is finding what you love and working hard at it.

Gr 4–6—Twelve-year-old Shelley and Jonathan are average kids: forgettable, normal, and looked over. In fact, many of their classmates have been going to school with them for years and would not be able to recognize them if they were stuck in an elevator together. However, their ordinariness is the qualifying trait that the League of Unexceptional Children is looking for. The League is a covert network of spies that are, well, unexceptional. The unexceptionals are the forgotten ones, the spies that can slip in and out of a room without anyone bothering to notice. After an inept security guard allowed the White House to be breached, several monumental things have happened: the vice president is missing, the nation's greatest spies are deactivated, and several confidential documents and data are compromised. Thankfully, Shelley and Jonathan are average, forgettable, but perfect additions to the League of Unexceptional Children. They have vowed to risk their lives for their country's liberties, all the while answering to the wrong name. From the best-selling author of School of Fear (2010) and the "Ghoulfriends Forever" series (both Little, Brown), comes a humorous middle grade novel that keeps readers giggling. The story flows easily through short chapters with interwoven art that further captures the humor of Jonathan and Shelley's case. VERDICT With humor that both girls and boys will enjoy, this likable book is a good fit for most collections.—Brittney Kosev, Dave Blair Elementary School, Farmers Branch, TX