Dani has to move, thanks to her parents' recent separation, and she's nervous about making new friends. She zeros in on the popular girls who are interested in drama and declares she was in all the plays at her old school. Dani's mom is not impressed with her new attitude, believing she's trying to impress girls she has nothing in common with, but Dani declares that she's happy with her "new me." When Hailey, Tasha, and Priya invite her to a sleepover, Dani's excitement is short-lived as the girls play drama games, such as improv, and Dani's lack of basic knowledge is revealed. Fearing school on Monday, Dani mopes until her dad tells her that being brave sometimes means doing things that scare you. Taking place over the course of just nine days, the story is told through Dani's diary, presented as a notebook with handwritten text and illustrations. That format, along with the extremely short page count, will make this straight-forward narrative best suited to emerging chapter-book readers.

Being the new kid in school isn't easy, and as Dani "Don't call me Danielle!" Donaldson learns, it's even harder to be someone you're not.Dani's parents have split up, and she and her mom have moved five hours away from both Dani's dad and her best friend. Dani has to make new friends immediately so her parents don't know how afraid, lonely, and unhappy she is. And she'll have to pretend she's cool so the kids at her new school will like her. So the 11-year-old lies to her new classmates: She was the lead in all the drama productions at her old school. The horrible truth only her diary knows: She's never been in a play. The popular girls are so impressed with Dani they invite her to a sleepover. How can Dani keep her lie a secret when the girls will certainly want to play games like Truth or Dare? Can she keep up with her new image and her new friends? Or will everything fall apart? This very slim, easy-reading series opener is presented as Dani's secret diary, with lined pages, faux handprinted text, and sketches. Although Dani is 11, the reading level will appeal to both younger readers and struggling older middle graders. Artwork shows Dani as a white girl with light hair, and whiteness is assumed for most characters, with only naming conventions suggesting otherwise.This brief book's pat message: Be yourself. (Fiction. 5-9)