Great idea for a book and really well executed. A thoroughly good read. Highly recommended. .

I have to admit, I loved the beginning of the book. The reader is drawn right in from the start - after all, everyone can relate to Lily's terrible first day at a new school experience! As the story continues to evolve, Lily learns to look at what friendship means to her. She has to assess what makes a good friend and whether it is worth it to be part of the "in-crowd". There are also several messes along the way that she unintentionally (or occasionally intentionally - it seemed like a good idea at the time!) involved in.

While this was a fun little read, I didn't love the characters like I hoped that I would. I liked Lily from the onset but Darby, the other main character, was harder to like. In fairness, I think Darby is probably a pretty typical fourth grader who is also struggling with fitting in... But I still didn't love her. :)

Bonus points for the adorable illustrations that are throughout the story - they really added to the storyline!

Patricelli goes from board books to chapter books with the same dynamic and colorful appeal that she is known for. I look forward to reading more diversely with this author going forward and am thrilled to see her expanding her offerings.

There's nothing worse than being the new kid in school, especially if you are a shy, introverted kid like fourth grader Lily Lattuga. But luckily, that first day, Lily is invited to play four square with three other girls, and things go well, until she throws her lunch up in the middle of the game. She is quickly escorted to the nurse's office by another girl, who introduces herself as Darby Dorski.

Darby is as outgoing as Lily is shy and with a bit of a devil may care attitude. She seems to want to befriend Lily, but Lily wants nothing to do with her. Eventually, though, the two girls do become friends and have lots of fun, including trying to get some of the many frogs on Darby's side of the lake they both live on to settle in on Lily side, where no frogs live.

Lily is also the kind of kid who never does anything that gets her in trouble, but learns that Darby had a best friend named Jill, who always seemed to get only Darby in trouble. Jill had moved to London because of her mother's job eight months ago, and Darby is relieved she's gone. - no more getting in trouble. Soon Lily and Darby form the Rizzlerunk Club, of which they are the only two members. That is until Jill's return, complete with school uniform and British accent. Jill insists on not only joining the Rizzlerunk Club, but also being Queen of it.

Before Lily knows it, she and Darby both seem to be under Jill's spell and together they are carrying out Jill's pranks and schemes, and landing in trouble all over again, while Jill acts like she had nothing to do with any of them. Ultimately, Lily realizes the person she has become under Jill's influence is not who she really is and makes a decision that could cost her her friendship with Darby.

Patricelli, author/illustrator of those some wonderful board books, has presented a realistic portrayal of how fourth grade life, friendship and peer pressure dynamics can work in Best Buds Under Frogs. Fourth grade is a real transition year for kids, and can be particularly hard to navigate, and worse when you are the new girl and care about what people think about you, as Lily does. And Darby, for all her self-confidence when Jill isn't around, seems to be putty in her hands when she returns. It's an interesting reaction to Jill, considering that Darby's family has a somewhat loosey-goosey approach to life in general and child rearing in particular, and that they come across as a close, loving, intact family, leaving one to wonder why she needs Jill in the first place. I never felt like I found a satisfactory answer for it. Lily's family is just a close and loving, but a little stricter - for example, TV and sweets are both limited by their health-conscious mother. Both girls have siblings, but so far, their troubles are only school and friend related.

Both girls (and Jill) live on a large lake, and although they always wear life vests when in their pedal or rowboats, they are always in them without an adult, even in rainstorms. I had kind of a problem with that or am I being overly parental about it? Because then, I thought of things I did at that age, like riding the subway alone, or going to Prospect Park lake with my best friend and catching tadpoles and the occasional frog (none of which we kept) by ourselves.

For the most part, I found this book to be very funny, and I enjoyed Lily's cartoon-like illustrations that Patricelli peppered throughout the book. I thought this is a good transition book for kids ready to move on from chapter books, but not ready for middle grade stories or for students in fourth grade, and whose reading level is at a second or third grade level. I always found in my classes that books at that level didn't interest them. This would have been an ideal story for them.

I'm looking forward to reading Lily and Darby's next adventure.

This book is recommended for readers age 7+
This book was sent to me by the publisher, Candlewick Press

Fans of Patricelli’s board books will be delighted with her first novel. Fun and light-hearted, it reminded me of the Timmy Failure series. The characters are engaging and the story is relatable for young readers. Highly recommend.

I LOVED this book! One of the more realistic books about friendship that I have read in a long time. I thought it accurately captured what it is like to be the new kid at school, being friends with someone even when they tease you, and the dynamics of being a "third wheel" in a friendship. I also liked that it shows kids what to do when they are friends with someone who is a bad influence. As a huge fan of Leslie's board books, I am absolutely thrilled at her venturing into middle grade chapter books!

Lily and her sister both get sick their very first day in their new school, and Lily throws up at Darby's feet. Undaunted, Darby still talks to her, although Darby is as brash as Lily is shy, and Lily can't quite tell if Darby is making fun of her or not. Other girls in the class have formed a club, named after Darby's best friend Jill, who moved to England. When Jill moves back, Lily is afraid that she will lose her new friend, especially since Jill is really quite mean. The two friends get involved in lots of scrapes, including shaving off Lily's eyebrows and believing in the ghost of Captain Rizzlerunk (after whom they name their club), and navigate their way through the minefield of elementary friendships.

Strengths: This had a lot of pleasant illustrations, and reminded me of younger elementary school novels like Haywood's Betsy and Calhoun's Katie John. (Okay, okay: I'm old!) Lily is anxious about fitting in but is not beset with anxiety. Her parents are supportive, and I love how they are portrayed as eating healthfully, so that the Pop Tarts at Darby's house are a big treat!
Weaknesses: Too young for even my struggling readers. Middle school friendship problems and elementary friendship problems are very different. Then there were all the details about studying frogs that just wouldn't fly at my level.

What I really think: I would definitely purchase this for elementary school, but will pass for middle. If Patricelli ever does a notebook novel for slightly older kids, I would definitely investigate it!

I was interested in this book because I have been a fan of the author's picture books (especially Higher Higher) and board books (especially Quiet Loud) and I was curious as to how she would write for an older audience. While there isn't a lot of new ground covered in this story of fourth grade friendship, the writing style feels fresh and the characters jump off the page. The protagonist has a great voice, almost like a younger version of Jamie from the Dear Dumb Diary books, and the artwork, done in the author's signature style, contributes to the humor of the story. Best Buds Under Frogs is a great alternative for elementary readers who might not be ready for the more middle-school-focused storylines of series like Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Popularity Papers. In terms of content, it also makes a nice read-alike for the Stella Batts series by Courtney Sheinmel, The Nora Notebooks series by Claudia Mills, the Cody books by Tricia Springstubb, and the Mallory McDonald series by Laurie Friedman.