by Nikki Grimes

Dyamonde NEEDS those fancy new sneakers. Right now. Her classmate tells her that it’s her mom’s job to give her what she needs. Amazingly, Dyamonde’s mom agrees that it is her job to give Dyamonde exactly what she needs.

When Dyamonde comes home from school, though, she doesn’t find new sneakers – she finds an empty closet. Dyamonde’s mom said she really only NEEDS one set of clothes (the ones she’s wearing) and one set of pajamas. Uh-oh. The next day, Dyamonde has to wear the same clothes she wore the day before – complete with mustard stain, and her mom is not giving in.

At school, Dyamonde learns that a classmate’s home has burned down, and she truly only has the clothes she has on. Dyamonde decides to share some of her clothes until she remembers that she doesn’t have any right now either. How can she help her classmate and get herself out of this mess?

This book is part of the Dyamonde Daniel series. Each book shows Dyamonde and her friends tackling real-world problems and coming up with creative solutions. Almost Zero is the longest in the series so far at 112 pages, so these books are great for kids that are moving into chapter books.

Reviewed by Jessica