The girls of skylark lane

On sale October 1, 2024 from Harper Children’s

National Book Award Winner Robin Benway's debut middle grade novel is The Baby-Sitters Club meets The Sandlot when twin sisters join a ragtag neighborhood girls softball team at a time when growing up could mean growing apart.

Aggie and Jac might be twin sisters, but lately they haven’t felt the same about anything. While Jac is excited about their move to Los Angeles and a chance to seem cool and mysterious, Aggie is worried her new locker won’t open, Jac could make new friends without her, and her friends from home will move on, leaving her all alone.

When the first day at school ends with an invite to join the neighborhood softball team, Aggie jumps at the chance to meet the other girls, even if she has to drag Jac along. Aggie is relieved to learn that each girl is dealing with their own problems and discovers that by being vulnerable, she's able to create strong friendships.

Jac’s interest in the softball team might have more to do with the captain’s older brother. But as Jac’s crush grows she worries that it’s just one more way she and Aggie have become different. And is it wrong if Jac wants to feel different from Aggie sometimes, even if there’s no one else she'd rather have for her twin sister?

Jac and Aggie try to hold on to their sisterhood even as life throws the biggest curveball of all: growing up.

From award-winning author Robin Benway comes a fun and heartwarming middle grade novel about friendships, family, and discovering the person that you’re meant to be.

PRAISE FOR THE girls of skylark lane

⭐️ “The well-developed, spirited, and diverse cast of characters is reminiscent of those in the film A League of Their Own. The narrative, told in the siblings’ alternating third-person perspectives, contrasts easygoing Jac with anxious Aggie, allowing both of their distinct voices to shine and reflecting the unique struggles and complexities of growing up with (and potentially apart from) a twin….A heartwarming, richly told coming-of-age story that radiates humor and care.”
– Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

⭐️ “In this heartwarming slice-of-life novel, a middle grade debut, Benway showcases the importance of friendship, family, and forgiveness in helping tweens navigate the awkwardness and uncertainty of early adolescence. Quickly resolved conflict is handled sensitively, further contributing to the feel-good atmosphere.”
– Publishers Weekly (starred review)

PRAISE FOR Robin Benway’s Previous Novel
A year To the day

⭐️ “A Year to the Day is simultaneously gut-wrenching and heartening, as grief and love so often are. Its unusual structure effectively relates a timeless story in a new and engaging way as Benway offers beautiful, profound reflections on loss, healing and forgiveness. Ultimately, Leo’s story is a lesson in self-compassion and hope, reminding readers that moving forward doesn’t mean forgetting the past, and although love can be painful, it’s worth holding on to.”
– Bookpage (starred review)

"The backward chronology is a bold and worthy experiment. We step away from the novel carrying a secret — we now know what Leo might never remember — and thus we feel complicit in withholding the devastating truth. Ultimately, A Year to the Day is a moving exploration of how the mind both punishes and protects, and a reminder of how fortunate we are to love and be loved, even if only for a short time.”
– The New York Times

“As the clock winds back and details slowly emerge, Benway highlights pivotal days throughout the year, rendering a persuasive portrait of heartache and loss….Suspense, unanswered questions, and raw emotion blend together in an honest examination of one family’s varying symptoms and stages of grief.”
– Publishers Weekly

"Authentic, often sarcastically funny dialogue and texts bring a lightness and grim humor to interactions Leo has with East and others. Her divorced parents and stepmother are poignantly developed secondary characters, and the intricate dynamics of Leo’s relationships with each of them underscore the ripple effect that occurs in families following a tragic loss. An intelligent, compassionate examination of a family enduring a nightmare.”
– Kirkus Reviews

"The novel keeps a tight focus on Leo herself, allowing her to be relatable in both her growth and grief, while the third-person voice keeps the deepest heartbreak at a distance. The unique storytelling structure builds tension by slowly revealing small details of Leo’s past year, placing in sharp relief the one big thing she cannot recount. East, then, emerges as Leo’s most potent foil, since he remembers what she does not, including a truth revealed in the shattering final chapters, one that might be foreseeable but is an emotional gut punch nonetheless.”
– Bulletin for the Center of Children’s Books

“A nuanced, sensitive capture of a devastating event and the life beyond it.”
– Booklist