The scary solo by Sally Rippin

Hey Jack! series. Hardie Grant Egmont. ISBN: 9781742971261.
Age: First chapter book readers (6-8). Hey Jack is the spin off series of Billie B Brown and takes the same easy chapter book format with large print and illustrations on most pages. Readers of the Billie series will already be familiar with Jack as Billie's best friend and next door neighbour and will now be able to see the world from the perspective of the somewhat shy yet aspiring Jack. In this instalment we follow Jack on an emotional rollercoaster of jittery, nervous, scared, angry, jealous, sad, grumpy, excited and proud feelings.
The journey begins with Jack wanting to sing a solo in the school concert but during try outs he gets nervous and his best friend Billy gets the solo instead of him. Jack has to deal with all the emotions that arise because of this but then when the night of the concert comes and Billy is hit with an attack of nervousness Jack knows exactly how his friend is feeling and is able to help her out. The main themes of this story are about being with a good friend and recognising and dealing with emotions. I would like to think that the Hey Jack series would appeal to both young boys and girls, especially with girl fans of Billie B Brown already being familiar with the lovable character of Jack.
Nicole Smith-Forrest