Drat! You Copycat! (Katie Kazoo, Switcherro Series #7) »

Becky is the new girl in class 3A, and she's a great big copycat! She's trying to be just like Katie's best friend Suzanne. She follows Suzanne around, dresses like her, and steals Suzanne's class report topic. Suzanne can't stand Becky! Then, the magic wind turns Katie into Becky. Will Suzanne change her mind about the new girl? Will Katie turn back into herself without causing too much trouble?

Children's Literature

The seventh book in the "Katie Kazoo, Switcheroo" series unintentionally tells two completely different stories. One story has Katie befriending the new girl Becky—and Becky's way of fitting in to gain friends is to imitate Suzanne, Katie's fashionable and outgoing friend. Suzanne is not pleased with Becky's attention, and when Becky chooses the research topic everyone knows Suzanne wants, Suzanne becomes livid. The other story, and the connecting vein for the series, is that a magic wind catches Katie when she is alone and literally puts her in someone else's shoes. Katie never knows when it will happen or who she will become. Not surprisingly, Katie becomes Becky on the day of her research presentation. It is completely unnecessary for Katie to become Becky, as she learns nothing except she cannot present Becky's project. The resolution of why Becky is acting like Suzanne is explained when Katie is herself talking to Becky in the bathroom. The brightly colored Bratz-doll-inspired cover art sets up the wrong idea for the interior. It is not enjoyable, the inside illustrations are drab black-and-white hues, and it feels very obvious that Katie's pointless magical stint as Becky is only added so it could be included in the series. Reviewer: Renee Farrah