Lisa Yee
Millicent Min, Girl Genius
Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic , 2003.

Parents, educators, and psychologists have long puzzled over what to do with the child genius. What are the ramifications when a kid is allowed to progress too far, too fast? How can a child's intellectual needs be balanced with social and developmental ones? Lisa Yee's new book, Millicent Min, Girl Genius, explores these dilemmas from the perspective of a kid caught between two worlds.

Intellectually, eleven-and-a-half-year-old Millicent Min has already progressed far beyond her age group. She completes summer coursework at a local college with ease, spends her spare time solving math cryptarithms, and plans to win the prestigious Fields Medal by age twenty--twenty-three at the latest. But while Millicent may be at the top of her class academically, socially she's a dunce. In the eyes of her fellow high schoolers--as well as kids her own age--she's a laughingstock, a loser. Unfortunately, she lacks the self-awareness to do anything about it.

All that changes when she's befriended by loquacious Emily, new in town and consequently oblivious to Millicent's intellectual prowess. Two of the least athletically inclined players on their volleyball team, the girls bond instantly and end up sharing a summer of shopping, sleepovers, and massive quantities of junk food. Though Millicent is thrilled by this new friendship--the first real friendship she's had--disaster looms as she continues to avoid telling Emily that she's a genius, and then strikes when Emily makes the discovery for herself.

Yee handles the subject of Millicent's genius with grace, placing her challenges in the larger thematic context of acceptance and belonging, to which any reader can relate. Millicent initially assumes other kids are unfriendly because they're put off by her intellect. But as she begins to break down the stereotypes she holds about her peers, Millicent finds them unexpectedly willing to rethink the views they had of her--to see the whole Millicent.

Emily and Millicent do reconcile, but only after Millicent learns to think with her heart rather than just with her head. The adoption of a stuffed dog, a newfound delight in roller coasters, and a willingness to feel are just as much landmarks in Millicent's summer as is her stellar completion of her college course. In the end, they're also signs of hope--a promise that Millicent, though she may never be a genius when it comes to social interaction, may, with a little help from her friends, manage to pass.

Jenny Sawyer
Fall 2003