Juno Jones Word Ninja by Kate Gordon

Illus. by Sandy Flett. Yellow Brick Books, 2019. ISBN: 9780994557094.
A disaster is on the horizon! Muttonbird Bay School might be closing. Juno Jones loves her school, but the Men in Suits want to close it down! With three schools in the area, including a posh school and a public one near the sewerage system (known as the poo school), and not enough children, one of the schools has to go. And, according to their principal, there's only only one thing Juno and her classmates can do to stop it . . . show they are smarter and dedicated and so they need to READ! Which is perfectly fine for people like Perfect Paloma, Smelly Bella and Genius George, but Juno Jones is a kid who doesn't like reading. She prefers being a secret ninja, telling jokes and drawing so she strikes a deal with her teacher to write a book rather than reading one. She needs to become a Word Ninja.
And the result is this new addition to the series scene for newly independent readers for those who like something different with a quirky, feisty female lead in a setting they can relate to, but with a balance of male and female characters that means its appeal is not limited to girls. Each character has talents and skills that contribute to the development of the story, setting the series up for a whole range of new adventures.
Barbara Braxton