Serendipity
Serendipity, a perky middle schooler, is lucky, as readers will see in the first pages when she wins a radio contest (again) for free 
carnival tickets. As her day progresses, her usual good luck continues—good grades, the lead role in the school play, good scores on the basketball court, and a solid position as class president.
However, once she and her best friend Basil have an UNlucky run in with ZamZam, the carnival’s fortune-telling rabbit, her luck starts to change. It’s all ZamZam’s fault! Or is it? Serendipity is determined not to let anyone down, stop making mistakes, and handle everything on her own – but maybe she needs more help than the school’s unofficial wizard can offer and maybe even the best luck in the world won’t let her handle all the things she’s taken on.
Serendipity is a white girl with long brown hair that curls perfectly at the ends (usually). Unless she’s dressed up in a pink princess gown for the school play, she sports a purple shirt, short blue jumper, and yellow shorts. Her legs are drawn with long, thin lines. Her best friend Basil is also white, with short, orange hair and a heftier build. She is usually shown in shades of green, her preferred clothes being a green shirt and brown shorts. Serendipity’s vice president, Chel, wears a headscarf and there are students with varying skin colors on the periphery of her circle. There are a lot of pink accents in the art, from Serendipity’s cute strawberry hat, worn to disguise her unexpected bad hair day, to the pastel swirls of her thoughts. The carnival tent is deep pink and the night scenes are shown in dark purple shades.
This is a candy-pink, sweet as lollipops offering. It’s more fantasy than realistic—most modern middle schoolers would laugh at the idea of involvement in three activities being too much to take on and the dramatic play director and aggressive school election are old tropes that don’t usually appear in actual school life. However, the overall message is a thoughtful one and there are some especially good moments where Basil expresses her frustration with how easily everything comes to Serendipity—and her lack of appreciation and awareness for that privilege.
This will be a popular choice where Raina Telgemeier read-alikes are in high demand, especially for younger elementary school readers and those who aren’t interested in, or ready for, the more serious challenges they may meet in middle school.
Serendipity
By Gabbie Benda
Holiday House, 2026
ISBN: 9780823457892
NFNT Age Recommendation: Middle Grade (7-11)
