Books like Imogene's Last Stand
By Candace Fleming
Imogene's Last Stand is for the kid who already has a favorite founding father. She dresses up as Paul Revere and rides through town yelling that the bulldozers are coming, determined to save the old historical society when nobody else seems to care. Kids who love shouting along with her will find more below.
Same fed-up-then-triumphant arc as Imogene, but The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires zooms in on one kid's quitting-and-trying-again instead of a whole town.
If your kid liked watching Imogene stand alone against the whole town, Stephanie's Ponytail by Robert Munsch gives you that same lone-holdout streak, just about hair.
A boy named Nathan decides to keep his first lost tooth instead of trading it away, setting off an all-out battle of wits with a Tooth Fairy determined not to lose.
When a wild wind blows away the washing, a determined boy sets off across the world to track down his favorite superhero underpants, from the Serengeti to the mountains of Nepal.
Less town-saving plot, more pure chant. I Knew You Could! by Craig Dorfman strips the story down to one line of encouragement repeated until it sticks.
Same stubborn kid-against-the-odds energy, but the obstacle in Clever Jack Takes the Cake by Candace Fleming is a cake falling apart on a long walk, not a town hall meeting.
That same loud, proud kid-taking-on-the-grownups energy, but Shirley Chisholm Is a Verb! by Veronica Chambers is a real person's actual fight, not a made-up town council.
Another small hero solving her own problem while grown-ups shrug. I Lost My Bear by Jules Feiffer keeps that same stubborn streak going.
Imogene never gives up even when nobody backs her. The Three Ninja Pigs by Corey Rosen Schwartz adds training-montage energy and a sister who actually lands the win.
The chant-and-repeat rhythm carries over, but Journey Cake, Ho! by Ruth Sawyer turns the town parade into a runaway cake gathering a whole barnyard behind it.
A boy named Louis can't hold in his thoughts — they rumble in his tummy and push on his teeth until he erupts, interrupting everyone — until he learns to manage his volcanic words.
Imogene refuses to back down from grown-ups. Princess Smartypants by Babette Cole gives you a princess who outsmarts every suitor sent to change her mind.
