Mr. and Mrs. American Pie

Starred review from July 1, 2018
Mrs. Maxine Hortence Simmons is the perfect Palm Springs housewife. So when her husband, Douglas, tells her he's leaving her for his pregnant girlfriend, she self-medicates and is soon dancing on her perfect Thanksgiving table, spilling cranberries on a Hearst, and ending up in the pool with the turkey. She is exiled to Scottsdale, though she takes Douglas' precious Jaguar E-Type. Twelve-year-old Chuck Bronski is fascinated by his new neighbor, and when he's not taking care of his baby sister, Dawn, he practices his spy skills. Maxine also casts a spell on Robert Hogarth, restaurant owner and bartender waiting for an embarrassing incident back home in Chicago to blow over. Maxine finds hope for a triumphant return to Palm Springs in the Mr. and Mrs. American Pie pageant. Her lack of family is hardly an obstacle, and soon Robert, Chuck, and Dawn are learning to play their respective roles in her faux-mily. Alternately narrated by Maxine ( a bona fide hoot, according to Robert), Robert, and Chuck, McDaniel's debut is the perfect blend of salty and sweet, combining 1970s culinary horrors like ham and bananas hollandaise with a motley crew of fakers learning what family really means.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)