From Black-ish writer and director Gail Lerner comes a whimsical and heartwarming tale where two unlikely allies band together to protect and defend the insect world from the worst enemy of all…humans.
Ten-year-old Eden’s quiet life is upended when she saves a paper wasp nest from destruction and discovers, to her awe and amazement, that she and its haughty queen can talk to each other. This first conversation is the start of a grand adventure, leading Eden to The Institute for Lower Learning, a secret laboratory devoted to the peaceful coexistence of humans and insects. The Institute is more fantastic and idyllic than Eden could’ve imagined but hidden deep within its tunnels is an old secret that could spell the end for all insects on earth.
Nine-year-old August, an aspiring actor and bullied fourth-grader, is looking for that very secret after a few disastrous encounters have left him wanting to squash every annoying bug into oblivion. After all insects are small—he is big. And if there is anything he’s learned from the bullies at school—it's that being bigger is what counts.
But in the world of the Institute where insects have a place of their own, both Eden and August discover being bigger isn't necessarily better and sometimes the most courageous thing to do is to set out to make a new friend.---from the publisher
368 pages 978-0593407851 Ages 8-11
Keywords: friendship, magical realism, insects, bullying, courage, 8 year old, 9 year old, 10 year old, 11 year old, African American and Black fiction, African American author, diversity, diverse books
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Other reviews: “What an enchanting and wondrous book for young readers.” —Jamie Lee Curtis, actress and bestselling children’s book author
