Yee. Lisa. Millicent Min, Girl Genius. Arthur A. Levine books, 2003. ISBN 9780439425193
What’s it about?
Being a child genius is tough, Millicent Min can attest. Millie’s life gets more complicated when her mom signs her up for volleyball and makes her tutor her nemesis Stanford Wong.
Find out more:
An eleven-year-old genius, Millicent Min is enjoying her summer, looking forward to spending time with Maddie, her eccentric grandmother, taking her first college course, and making new friends who are interested in intellectual talks . . . until her new college friend turns out to be a sham, her mother signs her up for volleyball, and she has to tutor her childhood nemesis, Stanford Wong. Millie, despite (or because of) her intellect, struggles socially and doesn’t have any friends her own age. Things begin to look up when Millie makes a friend in volleyball, a cheerful girl named Emily Ebers, who adores her. Millie hides the fact that she is a genius, however, since she thinks Emily won’t like her any longer if she knows Millie’s IQ is through the roof. Millicent goes to comic lengths to conceal her intelligence, which turns out to be a bone-headed move—Emily finds out about everything, and feels betrayed that Millicent wasn’t honest with her.
This entertaining book is one of those rare books that manages to be both funny and substantial. Millicent has a unique voice, and Yee is able to show the reader that Millie’s logic is not infallible—she jumps to hilariously mistaken conclusions. When the book begins, Millie’s intelligence defines her to herself and the world. Before the reader gets to know Millicent the person, they are bombarded with her accomplishments, which are listed in a resume, including grades skipped, recent awards, television appearances, too numerous to completely list and thus capped with a pretentious “et cetera.” Readers will be drawn in as Millie begins to soften and show her vulnerability, particularly in her friendship with Emily and her worries about her parents. Hand this book to bright upper elementary students and middle schoolers, particularly those that enjoy humor and realistic fiction.
Genre label: Contemporary Realistic fiction, humor, multi-cultural
Reading level: 6th grade
Interest level: Ages 10-13
Read-alikes:
Harriet the Spy
Mindblind (although the protagonist of Mindblind has Asperger’s syndrome, readers interested in childhood genius will find this a compelling read)
Subjects/themes: Genius, friendship, honesty, family relationships
Awards: 2004 winner of the Sid Fleischman Humor Award
Series information: Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time and So Totally Emily Ebers
Character name/descriptions:
Millicent: Girl Genius, forced to join volleyball and tutor Stanford Wong, her nemesis
Stanford: Mr. Popular, potentially flunking out, Millie’s nemesis—and tutoring student
Emily: Effervescent and girly new best friend to Millicent; develops a crush on Stanford Wong
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