Violet Mackerel's Remarkable Recovery (Violet Mackerel #2)

Gr 2-4--Violet Mackerel has to have her tonsils out and her doctor gives her lozenges to soothe her throat until the surgery. This leads the irrepressible heroine to "The Theory of Giving Small Things," in which she postulates, "If someone has a problem and you give them something small like a feather, or a pebble, or a purple lozenge, that small thing might have a strange and special way of helping them." Violet hopes that after the operation she will have the voice of an opera singer. Meanwhile, while in the waiting room before the procedure, she makes friends with a woman who is having an operation on her arm, and Violet is able to put her theory into practice when she gives Iris a lozenge before her surgery. Violet really does have a remarkable recovery as she recuperates while enjoying a variety of ice-cream flavors. This early chapter book, featuring pencil illustrations, will be a hit with fans of Amber Brown and Clementine.--Sarah Polace, Cuyahoga Public Library System, OH