The Naomis are back in the sequel to Two Naomis? (2016), which picks up at the beginning of sixth grade. Over the summer, the families have combined households and the two stepsisters now share a bedroom, but it's sharing a new school that introduces tricky challenges. Naomi E. struggles with feelings of inadequacy, in contrast to überbookworm Naomi Marie's ease with academics. Meanwhile, despite the progressive school's championing of diversity, Naomi Marie is still on the receiving end of subtle and not-so-subtle racist remarks from her white classmate Jen. The heftier sequel allows Vernick and Rhuday-Perkovich to explore the intricacies of middle-school life as the girls must find a balance between multiple homes and groups of friends with rising expectations in the classroom. The deft and sensitive look at the range of racial insensitivity, shown from the two girls' perspectives, will be an eye-opening window and affirming mirror for many young readers. Perfectly captures the wonder and sometime-challenges of adjusting to the "yes, and" experience of blended families.

This sequel to Two Naomis finds new stepsisters Naomi Marie (who's black) and Naomi E. (white) adjusting to their blended family's changing dynamic. At their Brooklyn middle school, Naomi Marie experiences racism; meanwhile, Naomi E. feels pressure to be as academically successful as her stepsister. The Naomis must learn how to advocate for themselves and each other. The story unfolds authentically through both girls' points of view in alternating first-person chapters.

Stepsisters Naomi E. and Naomi Marie face many changes and challenges in their multiracial, blended family life in this sequel to Two Naomis (2016).Having the same first name is the least of their challenges. Naomi E. and her father are white; Naomi Marie, her mother, and her younger sister are black. All of them are very intentional about making their new blended family work. But as the Naomis struggle to adjust to their family life, they must also find their places as new sixth graders at a nontraditional school located in a gentrifying Brooklyn neighborhood. "Big family, new house, little privacy"—Naomi E.'s six-word memoir for her creative-writing assignment—captures how she's feeling. And to make matters worse, she worries that her father and stepmother expect her to be as academically confident and self-assured as Naomi Marie. Meanwhile, Naomi Marie faces racism at their supposedly progressive school, and she's frustrated that Naomi E. doesn't understand how she's feeling. Issues of identity, social justice, and race are explored with sensitivity and a deep understanding of the interior lives of middle school girls. At times a little too heavy on the girls' emotional processing of their experiences, the story nonetheless offers a realistic portrait of the kinds of uncomfortable and thoughtful conversations about family, community, social justice, and privilege that many young people are having—or should be having—with their families and friends.A sequel that packs as much heart, humor, and understanding as the first. (Fiction. 8-12)