When sixth grader Lauren and her long-time best friend Tara try out for the school musical, "Shake It Up!" (hula hoops and Elvis are involved), Lauren aces her audition while Tara does okay. But it's Tara who gets the starring role. The teacher explains that blonde-haired Tara embodies the "all-American girl" female lead, the clear implication being that dark-haired, biracial, Chinese American Jewish Lauren does not. Lots of 1980s details in this novel that revisits characters from the authors' earlier collaboration, This Is Just a Test, place this story firmly in that decade, but the essence of the plot and its exploration of identity could be happening now. The more Lauren thinks about the racist implications of how the teacher is interpreting "all-American" the more upset she becomes. She finds camaraderie with fellow chorus members, and comfort in the emotionally rich songs and voice of a country singer she discovers on the radio, even after learning the woman wasn't a Jewish singer breaking barriers in that genre (it turns out her name is Patsy Cline, not Patsy Klein). By story's end, Lauren and Tara's friendship has been tested and survived, while the cast comes together in a subversive opening night maneuver that affirms "all-American" is an identity that embraces them all in a story that deftly moves between humor and deep feeling. (Ages 9-12)