The party diaries: Awesome orange birthday by Mitali Banerjee Ruths, illustrated by Aaliya Jaleel

 The most popular Branches series tend to be the humorous and fantasy ones, but some of the recent realistic fiction ones have solid circulation.

The first "Party Diaries" introduces Priya, an Indian-American girl who is interested in helping animals, especially cute Quokkas, and loves to plan parties. When her mom's friend, Layla Aunty, asks her to plan a party, Priya is excited at the opportunity to earn some money to help the animals. But planning a party turns out to be a lot of work and several things go wrong. Fortunately, she has her friends and family to help and puts on a very successful, orange-themed party. The book ends with some crafts, discussion questions, and a note from the author and illustrator.

There are plenty of grade-school girls who like to make crafts, are interested in helping animals, and would love to plan parties. Whether it's their own preference or stereotypical expectations, there are few boys who are willing to read these slice of life, realistic stories though.

Verdict: There are several books in this series already and it circulates fairly regularly although not as much as some of the more popular series like Dragon Masters. A strong addition to most library collections.

ISBN: 9781338799613; Published January 2023 by Scholastic; Purchased for the library