# Merci Suárez Plays It Cool - Hardcover

by **Meg Medina** (Author)

**In a satisfying finale to her trilogy, Newbery Medalist Meg Medina follows Merci Suárez into an eighth-grade year full of changes--evolving friendships, new responsibilities, and heartbreaking loss.**

For Merci Suárez, eighth grade means a new haircut, nighttime football games, and an out-of-town overnight field trip. At home, it means more chores and keeping an eye on Lolo as his health worsens. It's a year filled with more responsibility and independence, but also with opportunities to reinvent herself. Merci has always been fine with not being one of the popular kids like Avery Sanders, who will probably be the soccer captain and is always traveling to fun places and buying new clothes. But then Avery starts talking to Merci more, and not just as a teammate. Does this mean they're friends? Merci wants to play it cool, but with Edna always in her business, it's only a matter of time before Merci has to decide where her loyalty stands. Whether Merci is facing school drama or changing family dynamics, readers will empathize as she discovers who she can count on--and what can change in an instant--in Meg Medina's heartfelt conclusion to the trilogy that began with the Newbery Medal-winning novel.

### Author Biography

**Meg Medina**, the 2023­­­­-2024 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, is a Cuban American author who writes for readers of all ages. Her middle-grade novel _Merci Suárez Changes Gears_ received a Newbery Medal and was a _New York Times Book Review_ Notable Children's Book of the Year, among many other distinctions. Its sequel, _Merci Suárez Can't Dance_, received five starred reviews, while _Merci Suárez Plays It Cool_ received four stars, with _Kirkus Reviews_ calling it "a fabulous finale to a memorable trilogy." Her most recent picture book, _Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away_, received honors including a Charlotte Zolotow Award and was the 2020 Jumpstart Read for the Record selection, reaching 2.24 million readers. She received a Pura Belpré Author Award Honor for her picture book _Mango, Abuela, and Me_. Her young adult novel _Burn Baby Burn_ earned numerous distinctions, including being long-listed for the National Book Award and short-listed for the Kirkus Prize. Meg Medina received a Pura Belpré Author Award and a Cybils Award for her young adult novel _Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass_, which has been adapted and illustrated as a graphic novel by Mel Valentine Vargas. She also received an Ezra Jack Keats Writer Award for her picture book _Tía Isa Wants a Car_. When she is not writing, Meg Medina works on community projects that support girls, Latino youth, and literacy. She lives with her family in Richmond, Virginia.

**Number of Pages:** 352

**Dimensions:** 1.3 x 7.8 x 5.6 IN

**Publication Date:** August 16, 2022

**Accelerated Reader:**

**Quiz Name:** Merci Suarez Plays It Cool

**Interest Level:** Middle Grades, 4-8

**Reading Level:** 4.8

**Point Value:** 10

## Details

- **Price:** 18.99 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 18.99 USD | In stock |

## Images

- Merci Suárez Plays It Cool - Hardcover

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