Unlike many Newbery honor books that I've enjoyed, this one just didn't work for me. The character of Yolanda is a middle school girl who is sassy, bossy and big in body weight and attitude. These attributes seem to be painted as good traits.

Yolanda's good trait is her relationship with her brother who his challenged in his ability to interact and communicate verbally, but who is very gifted when playing music.

Yolanda's brother uses a harmonica his father gave him to exhibit his genuine talent. During a trip to Chicago to visit her mother's friend during the jazz festival, Yolanda finds a way to get her brother on stage to let his talent shine and to be recognized. Again, the way she does this is sneaky and underhanded -- not great personality traits to admire. ( )

Yolanda is big for her age, but she knows how to handle herself when the 'whale' jokes happen. She's smart but surly, and she doesn't really have any friends. Her little brother is quiet and has trouble reading, but Yolanda becomes convinced that he is a genius with their father's old harmonica, so she sets out to create a scheme that will convince her mother he needs special schooling to foster his gift.
There were things I really appreciated about this book, but then there were others that I really didn't. From the start, I didn't at all like Yolanda's character; I assumed that the story was traveling along the 'closed-off and prone-to-roughness kid learns to open up and empathize' theme so prevalent in Newbery Honor books, but Yolanda remains fairly selfish, unsympathizing, and unsympathetic throughout. The ending was abrupt and too pat, with a last-minute attempt to make Yolanda seem as if she has changed (although not done well enough for me to buy it). There are also a few threads to the story that fail to connect by the end, which leaves the whole thing feeling incomplete. And then the narrator made some strange choices in the character-voice department, making one fifth-grade girl sound like an old diner waitress with a decades-long smoking habit. Strange.
All this is too bad, really, because of the good things here: Yolanda's little brother and his musical abilities are nicely painted, especially in contrast to his struggles with reading and speaking. It seems clear that he's on the autism scale, and although his mother doesn't seem to want to admit that, he finds a strong ally in a speech therapist at school, and that relationship (although not completely fleshed out) is nicely portrayed. Also, Yolanda's family is made up of her mother and her aunt, who are self-made black women from Chicago and are easily members of the upper-middle class there. What I love about this is that it's presented as no big deal, as in clearly achievable to the point that it's not something to make the focus of the story. Most Middle Grade books featuring black families seem to revolve around those families living in poor neighborhoods and struggling financially, and those stories are important, yes, but it's also important to show other possibilities and other realities to young readers of color. I want them to live in a world in which successful women of color are so commonplace that that idea takes a far back seat to the rest of the story in the books those young readers read. So I'd like to see more of this, but I'd also like this particular story to live up to this background setting. ( )

Genre: Realism Literature
Age Appropriateness: Primary, Intermediate
Review/Critique:
After moving from Chicago to Michigan, Yolanda's life changed dramatically. One thing that didn't change though was how Yolanda protected her younger brother. While spending so much time with her brother, Yolanda discovered that her brother was a musical genius. Yolanda tried again and again to have her mom realize her brother's talent, but when she didn't Yolanda worked hard to get her brother recognized by some of the biggest blues musicians in Chicago. While all of this was happening, Andrew (Yolanda's brother) was listening to life and figuring out how to express life through his harmonica.

This is good realism because while the story isn't true, it could be. The family was two kids with a single mom, there was a move, and the older sister took care of the younger brother.

Yolanda’s Genius - Carol Fenner 5 stars
This is Newberry Honor book that is probably written at a 4th or 5th grade reading level. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I would love to use it with a class of bright middle grade kids. Yolanda is a big, black, 5th grade girl who moves from Chicago to a Michigan suburb with her widowed mother and younger brother. The story is about her quest to draw adult attention to her brother’s musical gifts. It is also the story of her struggles as an exceptionally intelligent girl to adjust to new surroundings and make friends.
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Yolanda's family moves from Chicago to Grand River, Michigan. Life is very different in Michigan. Her little brother Andrew is having trouble learning to read, and doesn't talk very much. However, Andrew loves to play his harmonica. Yolanda sees that her brother is truly gifted and is determined to convince the world he is a genius. GENRE: realistic fiction. USES: to teach people are gifted in different ways, sticking up for one another. MEDIA: n/a. CRITIQUE: I think the author does a great job of helping us understand Yolanda's perspective, and relating to the characters. The author also created characters with fun, memorable personalities, that make the story interesting and captures the readers attention.