"A spirited children’s debut and an empathetic take on finding one’s passion and growing up." — Publishers Weekly (starred review) K-pop fandom and Freaky Friday collide in a hilarious body-swap story that celebrates the fans who drive one of the biggest musical sensations in the world. Skylar is convinced that life for her as an eleven-year-old is way harder than for any adult, including her cranky principal, Ms. Callus. The only good part about being eleven is being a massive K-pop fan, even if her parents do ban her from all things AZ8, the best K-pop boy band in the world. When a freak accident causes Skylar and Ms. Callus to switch bodies, Skylar finds herself trying to convince the world of AZ8’s supremacy, going viral in a K-pop dance video, and somehow running her school, all while stuck in a seventy-one-year-old’s body. And then she gets the chance to meet AZ8 in real life. With the help of her bestie, Dana, and her own wits and passion, Skylar must decide whether her K-pop dream come true is worth risking being stuck as an old lady forever. A feel-good tale singing with laugh-out-loud moments, Skylar and the K-Pop Principal is a joyful and uplifting story of friendship, fandom, and chasing your dreams. In this body-switching romp à la Freaky Friday, Goldie deploys all the high-octane energy and devotion inherent to fandom communities and stan culture to present an earnest homage to K-pop. It’s a spirited children’s debut and an empathetic take on finding one’s passion and growing up. —Publishers Weekly (starred review) This comical, lighthearted story is an ode to K-pop fandom, but the hilarious jokes and situations will entertain readers unfamiliar with that world. . . A funny, feel-good tale. —Kirkus Reviews This novel illustrates that every decision has both positive and negative consequences—and that the impacts can be far-reaching. In the course of the story, Skylar and Ms. Callus' roles reverse, challenging Skylar to really dig deep and appreciate her life and the opportunity to chase her dreams. —Booklist Luan Goldie is the author of Nightingale Point , which was long-listed for the Women’s Prize for Fiction (UK) and was chosen as one of the titles for World Book Night 2023. She is also the author of Homecoming and These Streets . In 2018 she won the UK’s prestigious Costa Short Story Award, and her short stories have appeared in newspapers and magazines. Skylar and the K-Pop Principal is her debut book for young readers. A former teacher with more than a decade of experience, Luan Goldie lives in London. 1 Appropriately Obsessed My eyes ping open as Kookie scratches at my bedroom door and lets out her weird meow, which sounds nothing like a meow but more like an airplane tumbling from the sky.  “Neeowww.”    “Ugh,” I moan as I roll over to grab my phone off the charger. It takes a few minutes to turn on as it’s old. So old. It belonged to Dad, then Mom, then my brother, Jesse. It even belonged to Nana at one point, but she was too embarrassed to be seen in public with it, so it was agreed that before it was sent to the Museum of Historical Objects, I could have it.    When it finally comes to life, I’m greeted by Woojin’s megawatt smile.    “Good morning,” I mumble as I kiss the screen. Now, of course I love all eight members of AZ8, the best boy band on the planet, equally. But Woojin is my favorite because he has the best hair and loves small animals.    I have four new messages, all from Dana, my best friend and fellow fangirl. First message: Morning!!! Happy Monday. Are you awake? Are you excited? I’m SO excited!    AZ8 is making a video comeback this evening, and while this is very exciting, Dana is generally an excited kind of person. Second message: I LITERALLY can’t eat breakfast.    Third message: So EXCITED I just buttered a tea bag.    Fourth message: Michyeosseo!     Michyeosseo? While I listen to around a hundred hours a week of K-pop, also known as Korean pop music, I still rely on online translators for even the most basic of words. Hmm, let’s see: michyeosseo means crazy . I text back: Annyeonghaseyo!    Which means hello and is the longest Korean word I know how to spell. I really struggle with languages and have recently concluded that, like soccer and breaststroke, languages are something I’m incapable of learning. Along with piano, singing in tune, ice-skating, boiling eggs, and 99.9 per cent of mathematical concepts. Hmm, it’s actually a really long list . . .    Kookie scratches at the bedroom door. “Neeeeowwww.”    “Skylar,” Dad shouts, “ your cat is crying.”    I stick out my arm from under the duvet and pull open the door handle, which I can easily reach from my bed because I have the tiniest box room ever made. That’s not a complaint, because my room is perfect. I have a big bed covered with the plushies I’ve dedicated the last two years of my life to collecting, a shelf where I safely store my 160