The fourth book of a series about the everyday adventures of a young girl named Jessie who has two moms. In this one, Jessie is off to play with her friends Helenna and Alex. On the first page, we see her leaving the house with woman named Georgia, who drives to her Helenna’s house. Readers who haven’t read the first book of the series won’t initially know that Georgia isn’t Jessie’s mom, but rather the woman who takes care of her while her moms are working (though whether she’s a nanny or a family friend is unclear). When they arrive at Helenna’s, so does Jessie’s friend Alex, dropped off by his Nana B. The three children dig in the backyard and uncover a hidden treasure box, which Helenna’s dad helps explain. Jessie and her friends demonstrate kindness in how they divvy up the treasures. At the end of the day, Georgia brings Jessie back home to Mommy and Mom, where Jessie tells them about her day.
Young readers will likely appreciate Jessie’s kids’-eye observations about her world. The story is pure dialog, which helps immerse readers in Jessie’s world, although the lack of dialog tags make it occasionally hard to tell who is speaking. Still, this is an earnest and cheerful story in which the fact that Jessie has two moms is purely incidental to the tale. Jessie and her moms are White, as are Helenna, her parents, and Nana B; Alex’s skin is a very light brown; he could be read as White or as a person of color.
