2009 Rhode Island Children's Book Award, 2010 Virginia Readers Choice Award -- Elementary, Massachusetts Book Award Honor, Nutmeg Award, and Nene Award.
Reading ages 7-11 ( )

Independent Reading Grade Level: 3-5

Independent Reading Level: Grades fifth +
Awards: New York Public Library's Children's Books 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing, the Nutmeg Award, and the Rhode Island Children's Book Award.

Evan and Jessie are not only siblings, but usually good friends. Evan understands people and Jessie understands math. Jessie is going to skip a grade and be in the same grade as her brother Evan which creates tension. This news causes rivalry and misunderstanding that escalates into an argument. When the argument escalates out of control, Evan and Jessie launch into an all-out war to see who can sell the most lemonade with just five days left of summer vacation. The book ends with a resolution focused on understanding one another and cooperation. ( )

This is a fun book for middle grade readers that teaches some simple tips for improving business sales. The book also demonstrates how mathematics is used in everyday life by outlining the steps for computing sales and profit. The story centers on a sibling lemonade sale competition, hence the title: The Lemonade War. This would be a good book to read in a 3rd or 4th grade math class where students participate by doing business calculations of their own as the story progresses. ( )