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Sparkle

by Lakita Wilson

A young performer faces change on and offstage

Regular price $17.09 USD
Regular price $28.49 USD Sale price $17.09 USD
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AlbakiReads Editorial

A young performer faces change on and offstage

At the start of middle school, Sparkle Moore is balancing her wish to help her family and her mother’s plans for her and her sister’s online-star ambitions. A diagnosis of alopecia brings a new challenge: as she loses her hair, Sparkle tries to keep the condition private while friendships, school-play auditions, and an advertising opportunity add pressure. Her story connects changing self-image with family expectations, friendship, and the demands of being seen by others. The plot centers on Sparkle’s efforts to understand what is happening and find a way forward with or without hair.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Ages 9–12 interested in middle-grade fiction about school and friendship.
  • Readers curious about stories involving alopecia and self-esteem.
  • Readers interested in young characters navigating family expectations and social media ambitions.

Themes

Alopecia and self-imageFamily expectationsFriendship and privacySocial media and performance

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

After twelve-year-old aspiring superstar, Sparkle Moore, is diagnosed with alopecia, she must navigate family, friends, and her own self-esteem with the added challenge of losing her hair. Perfect for fans of Stand Up, Yumi Chung! and From the Desk of Zoe Washington.

Sparkle Moore is destined to be a star. Her mother is determined to turn her and her younger sister, Nova, into social media influencers and budding superstars. And after her dad has lost work as a sitcom actor, Sparkle wants to do whatever she can to help her family financially, too.

But at the onset of middle school, Sparkle begins losing her hair--first her lashes, then her eyebrows, and then small circular bald spots appear in various sections on her head. It's hard enough having to go to school and hide her diagnosis from her friends--all while they're trying out for big roles in the school play--but Sparkle quickly has to deal with weird medications, itchy wigs, and lost opportunities her mom has wrangled, including a big shampoo commercial.

Despite everything she might do to hide what's happening, and all her work keeping her friends together, when Sparkle's secrets start coming to the surface--Sparkle has to come to terms with the changes in her life and show her classmates and her family what she can do with or without hair.
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