A chapter book for newly independent readers features a young African American girl who can’t wait to perform in her school’s talent show. Howie has practiced her song, her grandmother has made her a special dress, and she has sparkly barrettes to wear in her hair. But at the all-school assembly that is serving as a practice run for the show, she freezes in front of the audience. Not even when her two best friends, Pa Lia and Calliope, hold her hands is she able to get a word or a note out. Howie’s understanding grandmother takes her home and offers her comfort. Most important, she lets Howie realize on her own that she and she alone must decide whether to try again at the show that night. This is the third Jackson Friends book by Michelle Edwards. The first story, Pa Lia’s First Day (Harcourt, 1999), features Pa Lia, who is Hmong. The second title, Zero Grandparents Harcourt, 2001), has Calliope, who is white, as its protagonist. (Ages 5-8)