Description
Thirteen-year-old Amy McDougall is worried about Travis, the single gay guy who adopted her when she was a kid. He wants a boyfriend yet isn’t having any luck finding one himself. Amy decides the solution is for someone else to do the finding. Someone like her! Amy’s first attempts at matchmaking are embarrassing flops, despite advice from her hyper-smart best friend Grace. But then Amy hits the jackpot, getting Travis together with her middle school Spanish teacher, Enrique Diaz. ¡Muy bien! “I’m a master matchmaker,” Amy boasts to Grace. Grace isn’t impressed. “One measly match does not prove you’re a master matchmaker,” she insists. Determined to lay claim to the title, Amy makes a match between Edith, Grace’s mom, and Brian, a handsome businessman. After that, she even finds Grace a boyfriend, nerdy-but-cute Denry. By now Amy is sure no one can deny that she’s Amy McDougall, Master Matchmaker. Still, Amy soon finds there can be a price to pay for meddling in other people’s lives.
Amy McDougall, Master Matchmaker is a fun and engaging tale which takes a fresh look at important subjects like love and friendship. It’s equally suitable for reading while munching on a bowl of cereal in the morning, lounging in a hammock on a lazy afternoon, or lying tucked up in bed at night.
Praise for Amy McDougall, Master Matchmaker
“Gary Pedler skillfully weaves a tale of matchmaking antics while exploring the topics of race, sexual identity, family, and belonging.”
– Margo Kelly, award-winning author of Who R U Really?
Jude Atwood –
The premise is cute: a thirteen-year-old girl thinks her handsome gay dad shouldn’t be single, so she endeavors to find him a partner. Once she gets a taste for matchmaking, she keeps going, finding matches for others in her life.
It’s fitting that Amy and her dad have a weekly Movie Musical Night, because the plot of this novel moves forward like a fine musical: our plucky protagonist sets out to conquer a series of missions she’s set for herself and then has to deal with the consequences when she gets in over her head. Pedler keeps the hijinks grounded, never losing sight of the characters’ relationships.
Middle grade readers may appreciate the humor and the slightly mischievous escapades, as well as the honest look at how weird adult relationships can be.