Picture Perfect

A tween learns that perfection isn’t all it’s cracked up to be in this family-focused chapter book by the creators of Test Trouble. Sonal wants to submit a photograph of her extended family for a school photography project. The image must be exceptional, though, if she intends to one-up rival Dina, whose social media influencer mother is sure to help capture a flawless pic. But Sonal’s relatives won’t put down their devices long enough to smile for the camera. In response, Sonal’s grandmother plans a tech-free camping trip, and though the family balks, they agree to give it a try. Cooking cauliflower and potato shaak together over a campfire and looking at the stars turn out to be surprisingly fun—until Sonal learns that Dina and her relatives are in the neighboring campsite. The collaborators’ unsurprising, message-forward plot pulls back the curtain on contemporary digital overload and often insincere portrayals of people’s everyday lives on social media: as Dad points out, “This is family life, Sonal—messy and full of surprises, mostly not picture-perfect!” Humorous b&w cartoon sketches depict the tweens’ contrasting priorities and cultural and familial differences. Sonal’s family is of Southeast Asian heritage; Dina’s family reads as white. Ages 9–up. (Jan.)