This kids book was adorable and had little tokens of life lesions sprinkled throughout the story. I loved it. Magnolia Wu and her friend Iris learn a lot about life as they look for the owners of lost socks left at the laundromat. The Chinatown/NYC vibe in this book was also amazing. As an adult, I enjoyed this story, but what a great story for a kid. This one is worth picking up.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read such a cute story in exchange for a review.

When I read Know My Name and heard Chanel say she has always wanted to publish a book but unfortunately that her first book had to be about something so awful, I knew I would read anything else she published. It makes me so happy to hear she was finally able to become a published author writing something FUN. This book was so cute and I loved all the graphics and doodles.

Chanel Miller’s debut middle-grade novel should become a classic. It joins the elite tier of “media that makes me excited about New York City,” which is anchored by middle-grade novels that share an affinity with this one—Louise Fitzhugh’s Harriet the Spy (1964) and E.L. Konigsburg’s From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (1967). Miller’s prose sparkles like these, lyrical and whimsical and yet also marked by solidity. Another good comp is Adib Khorram’s Darius the Great Is Not Okay (2018, see my 11/24/23 post)—Khorram and Miller are both astute and generous in exploring difficult family relationships and sustaining friendships.

Magnolia Wu, age 9, spends a lot of time at the laundromat her parents operate. They’re always busy, and Magnolia feels alone—until Iris Lam moves from California. Iris becomes her first real friend when she takes an interest in Magnolia’s board of lost socks from the laundromat. The two embark on an adventure to unite each lost sock with its owner. This involves creative thinking and circuitous routes around their urban neighborhood. The sock detectives never find the right answer right away, and they’re perfectly happy with that.

Magnolia and Iris meet local business owners and other kids, and get to know their hidden depths. Some kids have parents who are abusive, withholding, or simply distracted. They learn about adults’ immigration stories and contend with racism. All of the tales brim with compassion. These topics get all the gravity they deserve, but appropriately for the age group—the book made me cry multiple times yet still feel good. Miller writes that she didn’t want fear to be “the driving force of their lives, and they are led solely by their curiosity and desires.”

This is an ode to imagination and community, a charge to really get to know people and show your love. The whimsical black-and-white illustrations add to the book’s simultaneously retro and contemporary feeling. I wonder whose hidden depths I might get to know soon. I’m so glad to live a world with this book.

(CW: anti-Asian racism; emotional and physical abuse by parents discussed)

Magnolia spends a lot of time at her parents’ laundromat and grows to feel bad for all the lost socks she finds—so much so that she has pinned them to a corkboard on the wall hoping their owners will reclaim them. Enter Iris, a newly transplanted Californian who not only sees Magnolia for the sweet kid she is, but also appreciates her sock goals. With Iris’ encouragement, she and Magnolia embark on a quest to reunite each sock with its owner. While on this quirky mission, Magnolia and Iris learn the meaning of friendship and community.

But what makes the story truly wonderful are the individual people (sock owners) we meet along the way and how they help Iris and Magnolia grow. As the individual sock stories unfold, the book explores how a seemingly everyday item can help kids learn about trying new things, not assuming you understand someone when you don’t know their whole story, dealing with loss and xenophobia, and accepting that not all adventures need to have a clear end point to be good. There was also one really poignant moment when Iris explains why being a sock detective is so important to her. I won’t spoil it other than to say that if you, like me, are a crier, you might need a tissue handy.

Magnolia Wu Unfolds it All beautifully balances the joy of childhood with the inevitable realities that kids start to face as they get older. For middle grade readers, I think this book will help them understand a bit more of that balancing act as well. Plus, it has super cute illustrations that really add to the joy of the book.

Ummm excuse but this book is dang perfect.

Chanel Miller has created a page turner of a chapter book for young readers with the emphasis of socks🧦 and oh my word does it hit you in the feels.

This is a fun story about Magnolia Wu… sock detective… why socks?!? Her family owns a laundromat in NYC and this summer she meets a new friend Iris who encourages Magnolia to sleuth whose socks have been left at the laundromat.

I loved these characters and the stories that unfolded from finding the owner of said socks. A fun adventure… that gives Harriet the Spy 🔎 vibes.

Thank you Philomel Books 📖
Releases 4/23

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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
5 Stars!

Know My Name, one of my favorite books, continues to mean so much to me. I always hoped that Chanel Miller would write another book. While I did not expect her next publication to be middle grade fiction, I have definitely not been disappointed.

Magnolia Wu Unfolds it All had me bawling my eyes out over socks. As I read this, I quickly realized the story was not about the socks but about uncovering the hidden stories of the people they belong to as well as the people Magnolia and Iris ran into along the way.

Magnolia- an almost 10 year old girl whose parents own a NYC laundromat- meets Iris, a friend “blind date” set up through their mothers. Magnolia and Iris are both children of East Asian immigrants however this does not bond them at first. Instead, the two become Sock Detectives and look for the owners of all the single socks left behind at the laundromat.

They encounter anti-Asian hate in their journey across the city, looking for the sock owners. It is heartbreaking to imagine these two young girls, not yet jaded by life, have to face the cruel realities of it. However, they also meet many lovely people, too. People that teach them the importance of small things and how they can outweigh the bad when you pay attention.

I adored these girls and this story, and hope everyone feeling a little jaded by life can pick this up and enjoy it. Sometimes it takes a child’s perspective to help an adult see.

Thank you, Chanel, for another beautifully written story ❤️

And thank you NetGalley and 🐧 Penguin Young Readers for this e-ARC!

this was so fun!! Chanel Miller is obviously such a talented storyteller and I'm so happy to see her writing shining in this fun adventure.
My only complaint is that it all went by too quickly! Maybe I'm just not used to middle grade pacing anymore, but so much happened in this and I just wanted it to be longer, or take more time to linger on each big reveal/lesson.
Would definitely read the next installment(s) if this is going to be a series!

This is a very cute book with a great vehicle for introducing characters with various foibles and for addressing race issues that reared their ugly head during COVID for Asian Americans. I think this will have great appeal for both adults and children and Magnolia herself is incredibly likable and has so many traits that kids could identify with. It's also quite funny and you'll never look at your socks quite the same again. Simply put, I loved it.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. I hope it has great success!