Evan and his little sister Jessie are both in the fourth grade, not because they're twins, but rather because Jessie skipped a grade. Jessie is particularly good at math, very focused, feels strongly that things should be fair, and believes that rules are meant to be followed.

When one of their classmates, Scott, announces that he now owns a fancy new Xbox 2020, Evan sees red. He knows exactly where Scott got the money for it - Scott stole that money, over two hundred dollars, from Evan's shorts when they were swimming at a friend's house. Evan doesn't have any proof that Scott did it, but it's the only explanation. Then Jessie comes up with a plan: she's going to bring the truth to light in a court of law created by her and her classmates.

I checked this out from my library's Overdrive without realizing that the library owned the first book in audio as well, or I'd have started with the first book instead. It looks like I'll be listening to this series out of order.

And I do plan on listening to the first book. I enjoyed this second book in the series more than I expected to, considering that Middle Grade fiction usually reads too young for me (yes, I know that's the point - I'm not the intended audience for these books and I realize that). Jessie and Evan were great characters, both flawed in their own ways but still good kids.

Jessie didn't quite feel like she fit in. I sympathized with her trouble figuring out where to hang out during recess (or was it lunch? I can't remember). The way she really got into her courtroom plan reminded me a bit of myself. I could imagine her tossing and turning in bed, unable to stop thinking about all the things she still needed to do before the trial. She'd taken on the responsibility of both setting up as realistic a trial as possible and acting as Evan's lawyer.

Evan was really into basketball and had a bit of a crush on one of his classmates, Megan, who was also his sister's friend. I hated the way Evan acted in one particular scene, but the good thing was that he hated how he'd acted too, once it was all over, and took the time to try to do something about it.

This ended in a way that was more peaceful and friendly than I expected, and I liked the layers it added to the characters.

One nice detail: each chapter began with a definition of a term or phrase relating to courtroom proceedings (for example, "perjury"). Usually it was something illustrated by a character's words or actions in that particular chapter.

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)

Sunday morning turns out to be an excellent time to go to the gym. I got a good hour of "I actually don't feel too awkward" exercise in and managed to finish this audiobook while I was at it.

This qualifies for the Baker Street Irregulars square, although it wasn't as much of a mystery story as I was expecting it to be when I checked it out. Evan and his sister believe they know what happened to Evan's $208, but they can't prove it. Jessie attempts to bring the truth to light in a court of law created by her and the other kids in her fourth grade class, but it ends up blowing up in her and Evan's faces. The ending was surprisingly peaceful and friendly.

I'm enjoying this more than I expected. It's basically Middle Grade legal fiction. Evan and his younger sister Jessie are both fourth graders, but that's because Jessie skipped a grade. Jessie is particularly good at math, very focused, feels strongly that things should be fair, and believes that rules are meant to be followed.

Evan believes that one of the boys in his class stole over $200 from him and used the money to buy a new game console, but he can't prove it. Jessie decides to set up a court of law, with members of their class as witnesses, jurors, audience members, and the judge. She'll be Evan's lawyer, and the other boy says he'll defend himself (he was given the option of selecting a lawyer from the audience, but they're all girls and he didn't want a girl lawyer).

When I read about the trial in the description, I assumed it'd be a mock trial set up by the class's teacher for some some reason or another. Seeing Jessie try to set everything up herself (using a pamphlet that gives an overview of the US legal system) is fun. I have a feeling that Jessie is the sort of girl who occasionally has trouble sleeping because she can't get her brain to shut up.

The Lemonade Wars is a series of books that focuses on a young girl and her brother who decide to have a contest about who can sell lemonade and make the most money.  The book explains how the characters invest in ingredients and supplies, sell products, and divide profits.  

This text could be used in conjunction with a lesson on economics.  In 3rd grade, I observed a teacher who read this text while her classroom focused on raising "money", buying supplies, and producing/selling products that they made.  Examples of products that the students produced were hair bows, home made necklaces, and posters.  The students earned monopoly money throughout the month, managed it to buy supplies from the teacher, and sold their goods to each other.  At the end of the assignment, the students counted their profits.  Along the way, the teacher taught about investments, money management, and quality control.

I believe students in grades 3-6 would enjoy this project and text.