Jacky Ha-Ha: My Life Is a Joke

Gr 5–7—Jacky's mom is back from Desert Storm, her dad has graduated from cop school, and summer is about to begin. Time for ice cream on the docks and hanging out with friends! Except Jacky's dad is taking a low-paying summer job to get his foot in the door with the police department and now her mom has decided to go into the police academy. Jacky and her six sisters have all been instructed to get jobs to help pay for groceries and babysit their youngest siblings. On top of that, a famous actress is in town, and Jacky's favorite teacher has asked her and her friends to be in a Shakespearean production. There is also a mysterious rash of crime going on all over town. How will Jacky juggle all of her responsibilities, solve the crime, earn enough money, and still have fun? Whimsically illustrated by French duo Kerascoët, the line drawings are reminiscent of "Archie" comics and add more jokes to the story, which is occasionally very funny with a wacky plot. Unfortunately, Jacky is a mostly flat character, as are her family and friends. Disappointingly, stereotypes abound. The Italian shopkeeper is described as wearing large gold chains and saying "fuggedaboutit," the only other characters whose physical characteristics are described in detail are African Americans, and it is noted that girls enjoy gossip, clothes, and relationships (but boys do not). Pop culture references from the 1990s detract from the story and may be confusing or irrelevant to today's kids.