Praise for Midsummer's Mayhem
What a wonderful, intriguing, and magical book. And wow, did it ever get my tastebuds going! Each time I picked it up, I felt the urge to head to my kitchen. . . . What I loved most was the smartness of it. It never once doubted its young readers.
Kathy AppeltNewbery Honor and National Book Award nominated author
Praise for Red, White, and Whole
LaRocca takes us back to 1983 with eighth grader Reha, who feels like she has two different lives– her American life at school, and her Indian life at home. Sometimes it feels impossible for those two worlds to mix. Ultimately, her Amma is her moon, and Reha is the stars– the meanings of their names. When Amma is diagnosed with leukemia, all variations of Reha’s lives come crashing down. Red, White, and Whole is a beautiful, poignant novel-in-verse about family, friendships, and the lifetime-end… Read more
Andrew King, University Bookstore, Seattle, WA
Praise for Much Ado About BaseballIt’s no mystery why Rajani LaRocca’s Much Ado About Baseball is a home run. Like the smell of freshly cut infield grass, this fast-paced story of friendship, fitting in, and finding yourself is filled with magic and math. It pops with baseball excitement and summer days full of possibilities.
David A. Kelly, Author of the Ballpark Mysteries series
Praise for Midsummer’s Mayhem
Midsummer’s Mayhem is an enchantment of a novel, bursting with magic, mystery, and mouth-watering baked goods. Readers who have their own baking-show dreams will be cheering for Mimi until the very last page.
Kate Messneraward-winning author of Breakout, The Seventh Wish, and All the Answers
Praise for Much Ado About BaseballBaseball provides energetic context to this story in alternating voices of friends in a lovingly drawn and diverse community. Add magic, numbers, Shakespeare, and lashings of mystery, all seasoned with artful sprinkles of culinary flavor and equal parts humor and heart. Cleverly adjacent to the world of Midsummer’s Mayhem, yet standing wonderfully well alone.
Uma Krishnaswami, Author and Astrid Lindgren Award nominee
Praise for Midsummer's Mayhem
This riff on A Midsummer Night’s Dream is heartfelt and ridiculously fun. Mimi, sweet as sugar with a heart of gold, creates as many problems as she solves, but readers will be cheering for her and her family the whole way.
Booklist Review
Praise for Midsummer's Mayhem
An entertaining and epicurean retelling of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. . . . Strikes a perfect balance between the pleasant and the melancholy, as sweet and savory as one of Mimi’s confections.
Shelf Awareness
Praise for Red, White, and Whole
I felt this novel in verse in my bones. An important book, it will change how young readers see their world. And that’s the best kind of book to read at any age.
Jane YolenAuthor of The Devil's Arithmetic, Briar Rose, and Mapping the Bones
Praise for Midsummer's Mayhem
I savored every minute of this romp. I loved Mimi and her drive to be less invisible in her big family full of go-getters. The South Indian foods, well-defined in the glossary, added another layer of flavor to the story. The baking contest, reminiscent of The Great British Baking Show, was full of surprises, and the hints of magic and allusions to AMidsummer Night’s Dream were perfect. The included recipes are the icing on the cake.
Jen KraarCity of Asylum Bookstore, Pittsburgh, PA
Praise for Midsummer's Mayhem
I’m hungry for all the treats in this story and for more books from Rajani LaRocca. Mimi is a kind and inquisitive girl that you instinctively root for, and her struggles with failure really resonated with me. This play on Shakespeare with a culinary twist is absolutely delightful and, dare I say it, scrumptious. More, more, more!
Sami ThomasonSquare Books, Oxford, MS
Praise for Midsummer's Mayhem
The realistic characters and complex family dynamics augment the tightly knit plot, and the mouthwatering descriptions of food are guaranteed to make readers hungry. . .A delectable treat for food and literary connoisseurs alike.
Kirkus, Starred Review
Praise for Much Ado About Baseball
Much Ado About Baseball is the best children’s book I’ve read in the past 10 years!
Brad Thor, New York Times bestselling author of the Scot Harvath series
Praise for Red, White, and Whole
Rajani LaRocca’s follow up to MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM is a deeply moving #OwnVoices middle-grade verse novel, set in 1983, about a 13-year-old daughter of Indian immigrants. Torn between two worlds, Reha struggles to be both Indian and American, as she navigates through middle school, first love, and grief and loss when tragedy strikes. Full of relatable characters and situations, RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE’s message to stay resilient, hopeful, and loving is necessary and timely.
Alyssa Raymond, Copper Dog Books, Beverly, Massachusetts
Praise for Bracelets for Bina's Brothers
This culturally relevant, STEM-savvy picture book showcases a strong female protagonist.
Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Red, White, and Whole
This is a sweet, gentle story about love and loss, individualism and community, friendship and family, belonging and longing to live up to one’s dreams. In Reha, LaRocca has created a relatable protagonist who feels caught between two cultures, but ultimately finds her own way.
Padma VenkatramanAward-winning author of The Bridge Home and A Time To Dance
Praise for Red, White, and Whole
Truly, one of the most heart-expanding stories ever, filled with kindness, music, mythology, all of those things. But above all, here is a story of love, and the ways in which it transcends nationalities, age, science, and fear. In LaRocca’s gifted hands, her Reha shows us how to live in the world, even when it feels divided, even then.
Kathi AppeltNational Book Award finalist and Newbery Honor-winning author of The Underneath and Keeper
Praise for Seven Golden Rings
This heartwarming rags-to-riches story is accompanied by vivid illustrations that pulse with detail, movement, and color. … A cleverly imagined story with a delightful premise.
Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Much Ado About Baseball
In addition to the wonders of the game, readers will encounter magical delights like fairy dust, a Fountain of Youth, Books of Power and mildly poisonous snacks.
Linda Sue Park in the New York Times Book Review
Praise for Midsummer's Mayhem
Honeysuckle sweet with a pinch of mayhem and a fairy twist! You’ll only want to put this book down in order to eat an entire plate of cookies. Shakespeare and baking — it’s the book combo dreams are made of.
Liz RiceThe Book Cellar, Chicago, IL
Praise for Red, White, and Whole
This book is a marvel — at once so rich and so spare. A coming of age story, a family story, a story of America, of science, of friendship, of courage, of culture, of aspiration.
Ali BenjaminNational Book Award Finalist author of The Thing About Jellyfish