The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class: Thunder Nelson Does the Impossumble

Illustrated by Kat Fajardo

Introduction by Kate Messner

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$9.99 CAD

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Meet the kids in Mrs. Z’s wacky and wonderful third grade class! When Mrs. Z’s class is looking for an animal to “adopt,” Thunder Nelson knows just the critter—the baby possum she just saved. But Thunder isn’t ready for what happens when a wild animal goes to school!

Mrs. Z’s class is voting on an animal for them to virtually “adopt” and study the rest of the year. Elephants! Blue whales! Sparklemuffin Peacock Spiders! But Thunder hates voting—it’s like sports but less fun.

Then she finds an abandoned baby possum and she has a brilliant idea. She’ll bring the baby possum to school in her backpack, present a passel of possum facts, demonstrate the adorable “choo-choo” sound the babies make—and then unveil Moxie, the joey she’s hoping can join the class! How could they resist picking a real-live animal mascot? But when Thunder’s plan goes off the rails, Moxie—and the class—may end up in danger if Thunder can’t find a way to fix her mistakes.

Both sweetly poignant and laugh-out-loud funny, with black-and-white illustrations by Pura Belpré Honor artist Kat Fajardo, Thunder’s story invites readers into Mrs. Z’s class where friendship and fun rule the school, from award-winning author Martha Brockenbrough.

Perfect for!
★ My Weirdtastic School fans
★ Reluctant readers
★ Classroom read-alouds
★ Andrew Clements fans
★ Animal lovers!

Read them all! The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class have plenty of stories to share!
Emma McKenna, Full out (#1)
Rohan Murthy Has a Plan (#2)
Poppy Song Bakes a Way (#3)
The Legend of Memo Castillo (#4)
Wyatt Hill’s Best Friend Is a Lizard (#5) — available for preorder now!
Ayana Ndoum Takes the Stage (#6) — available for preorder now!
Olive Little Gets Crafty (#7) — coming soon!
Synclaire Fields Knows the Score (#8) — coming soon!
Theo Chang: Boy or Cat? (#9) — coming soon!

*The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class is an innovative series where every book is written by a different all-star author and features a different kid in the same third-grade class. They can be read in any order!

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The Kids in Mrs. Z's Class

Praise for the Kids in Mrs. Z's Class Series
"Uplifting and encouraging."
Kirkus Reviews
“Buy the book and the series. Kids need access to this diverse classroom of students who face everyday crises with their supportive friends, and this gentle read shows the goodness in the world without being overly sappy.”
SLJ
"Believable characters experiencing age-appropriate challenges: making new friends, navigating social groups, overcoming shyness, and dealing with embarrassment.... Share with fans of Annie Barrows' Ivy and Bean books or Sara Pennypacker's Clementine series."
Booklist
“[A] wholesome read…buoyant."
Publishers Weekly
"This new series is giving [Polk Street School] vibes. I absolutely love that each book is written by a different author and I love how diverse the classroom is. . . The great thing about [these] books is they showcase kids working together and supporting each other."
Teen Librarian Toolbox

On Sale: Nov 4, 2025
Page Count: 128 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN-13: 9781523532971

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Martha Brockenbrough

About the Author

Martha Brockenbrough is the author of more than twenty books for young readers, including YA fiction and nonfiction, picture books, a middle grade mystery, and a chapter book series. A faculty member at Vermont College of Fine Arts, she’s also the founder of National Grammar Day (every March 4), and she’s written game questions for Cranium and Trivial Pursuit. Her YA novel The Game of Love and Death won a Pacific Northwest Bookseller Association Award and a Washington State Book Award, and was a finalist for the Kirkus Prize. She lives in Seattle with her family. She invites you to visit her online at nothingtonovel.com.

Kat Fajardo (they/she) received a Pura Belpré Honor for Illustration for their first graphic novel, Miss Quinces (published in Spanish as Srta. Quinces). Born and raised in New York City, Kat now lives in Austin, Texas, with their pups, Mac and Roni. They invite you to visit them at katfajardo.com.

Learn more about this author

Kat Fajardo

About the Illustrator

Kat Fajardo is an award-winning comic artist and illustrator based in NYC. A graduate of The School of Visual Arts, she’s editor of La Raza Anthology and creator of Bandida Comics series. She’s made work for Penguin Random House on The First Rule of Punk (written by Celia C. Pérez), CollegeHumor, and several anthologies. You can find her working at her Brooklyn studio creating playful and colorful work about self-acceptance and Latinx culture. Or drooling over puppies at a cafe.

Learn more about this illustrator