This is a meandering first-person narrative about a teenage boy from rural Vermont. It's a tough/sad read because he's living in poverty with his drugThis is a meandering first-person narrative about a teenage boy from rural Vermont. It's a tough/sad read because he's living in poverty with his drug-addicted mother. He finds a big dog and names him Gather.
The book is written as if Ian is trying to explain himself to the reader. I liked this style of writing a lot, but it was sometimes frustrating how non-linear it was. It takes concentration on the reader's part to follow Ian's train of thought.
Ian has a hard time in school but there's an angel/hero teacher called The Sharpe who looks out for him. Ian is very smart, but his values don't align well with the school's. Ian wants to work the land, be a farmer, fix things, etc. It's hard for him to be around rich kids and folks who don't appreciate nature.
Great audiobook narrator; he was the perfect narrative voice.
10-year-old Ant is teased about being small and weak. But is it really weak to be a niceGreat audiobook narrator; he was the perfect narrative voice.
10-year-old Ant is teased about being small and weak. But is it really weak to be a nice person and talk about your feelings? Ant's best friend has bullying tendencies and seems to be carrying on the tradition of toxic masculinity, but luckily Ant makes a new friend who is 1000% better. Her name is Shirley and she gets teased about being tall and confident.
This was kind of like a sports story, but with a card game called Spades instead of athletics. It reminded me a bit of Not an Easy Win which featured chess. Spades is often accompanied by trash talk, but the "yo mama" jokes in this book are so old and corny. I cringed.
From the description I read, I thought Ant's recently deceased grandfather would play more of a role in the story, and while he definitely has a presence in the story, he's not talked about much. This is not a book about grieving the loss of a grandparent. It's more of a book about emotional maturity, friendship, trust, and coming to terms with a very flawed parent.
Content notes: Ant's father is an alcoholic but tries to hide it. He also has a gambling addiction. There is nothing super traumatic on the page. ...more
I really liked the first 75% of this book and then the plot ran out of stream and I found it slow at the end. Still, I appreciate that it didn’t have I really liked the first 75% of this book and then the plot ran out of stream and I found it slow at the end. Still, I appreciate that it didn’t have a cliche ending. My favorite aspect of this book was how it used chess as both a metaphor and motivation for the main character....more
My library has this in the children's section, but I think it's more of a teen book. Karthik is a rising 9th grader with a lot of responsibilities andMy library has this in the children's section, but I think it's more of a teen book. Karthik is a rising 9th grader with a lot of responsibilities and a big crush on a girl he keeps running into at the ice cream shop. I liked how Karthik connected to Leonard Berstein, but the plot was very slow-moving and so I didn't finish this. I have approximately 100 books I want to read this winter and this didn't grab me, but I may come back to it later. It's summer vibes books for sure. ...more
My 8yo and I are listening to all the Ivy + Bean books AGAIN. This one made us laugh so much AGAIN. I thought it was worth a review. My daughter's beeMy 8yo and I are listening to all the Ivy + Bean books AGAIN. This one made us laugh so much AGAIN. I thought it was worth a review. My daughter's been shaking her head and saying, "We've lost a few campers in nature study," in her "cowboy" voice all weekend. ("Nature study was one of the most important parts of camp. It was also the most dangerous.")
There is now an Ivy + Bean show on Netflix, which doesn't quite capture the hilarity of the books. Ivy and Bean are both weird little kids who are funny because they're so random and creative. Obviously, a tv show can feel very scripted, staged, and stiff. A true Ivy and Bean vibe would feel like improvised chaos. ...more
As an adult reader, this felt very didactic to me. Like when Tyrell overheard the "slick voice" man talking about his dastardly plans to move familiesAs an adult reader, this felt very didactic to me. Like when Tyrell overheard the "slick voice" man talking about his dastardly plans to move families out of the shelter faster (p. 99) I rolled my eyes so hard they almost fell out of my head. It was like a scene from Scooby-Doo. I also didn't like that Tyrell's mom seemed like a stereotype of a lazy welfare mom. I read another review that pointed out that this book has attractive virtuous characters and unattractive evil characters (e.g. Ms. G = attractive/good; MacVillain = unattractive/bad) which again plays into stereotypes.
But I think many young readers will learn something new about homelessness from this book and be drawn into the injustice/activism angle (though it does take a while for the plot to get going). I liked that the characters had more going on than just being homeless (a shared love of classical music). The audiobook had dual narrators for June and Tyrell and both were good.
This book reminded me of a cross between The Hundred Dresses and Stargirl. Both of those books were influential for me when I was young. Naturally, I This book reminded me of a cross between The Hundred Dresses and Stargirl. Both of those books were influential for me when I was young. Naturally, I loved this.
EEK does a lot of neat things narratively. Here are a few that stood out to me:
1. She tells the story from different points of view using close third-person narration. I'm a big fan of this, even though sometimes it took me a minute to figure out whose head I was in.
2. She throws a lot of characters at you quickly. In fact, for the first chunk of the book I was having trouble keeping all the students straight. But slowly they all came into focus for me and it felt intentional. Like in the beginning the reader is like Orchid trying to get to know everyone and how they relate to each other.
3. She breaks up the narrative with little scenes of partnerships during science class. This was super fun and I looked forward to those partner scenes and enjoyed them. Especially Daniel + anybody.
4. In some ways Orchid is the main character, but she is also mysterious. This is the way the book most reminded me of Stargirl and The Hundred Dresses. Orchid = the unusual girl who arrives and changes everyone's perspectives and then departs. There's such a delicate balance here of making Orchid as a character feel real and unreal at the same time:
We never know her real name. She gets the last word with her "I Am" poem. She has a full backstory. There's no hint about her future.
5. The buildup to the dance kept me reading. (I read this in about 2.5 hours in one sitting.) It's such a classic school story plot with the climax at a school dance, but you know the classics are classic for a reason. When the drama and fun went down at the dance it felt expected but also satisfying.
On the critical side, I didn't love that Renni was like pure villain energy. But EEK put a lot into understanding Janie's interiority and I saw Renni as an extreme version of Janie. So it's not as if the book is about bad kids vs. good kids. Other than Renni all of the kids were realistically complicated.
I think EEK could have a Newbery threepeat with this book. It's probably my favorite of hers next to Lalani of the Distant Sea. ...more
My 7yo and I read this together. It's funny, charming, and we both liked it a lot. She is looking forward to reading more in the series.
We had to looMy 7yo and I read this together. It's funny, charming, and we both liked it a lot. She is looking forward to reading more in the series.
We had to look up a bunch of the celebrities named in the book for the purpose of visualizing the kind of haircuts they have. Most of them are NBA and NFL players. Thanks be to Google image search. My haircut vocabulary is pretty limited.
This book also revealed that my Seattle-raised child is confused by the idea of calling your own family members sir and ma'am. It started a discussion about how there are different expectations around politeness/manners in different parts of the country (and the world). And yet this book also shows how it's ok for children to stand up to grown-ups. J.D. is right to be proud of his haircutting skills and he's not punished for showing up the local professional barber.
The book focuses on J.D.'s artistic gifts, but there's also a nice math/economics lesson baked into the story. How much will he earn if he charges $3 a pop and has 10 clients each Saturday? What is the point of earning a lot of money if he's working constantly and has no time to enjoy the fruits of his labor? ...more
This is a warm, quiet story of a 3rd grader's growing self-confidence. It's loosely based on the author's childhood. She was born in Mexico and immigrThis is a warm, quiet story of a 3rd grader's growing self-confidence. It's loosely based on the author's childhood. She was born in Mexico and immigrated to the US with her family at a young age. Stella doesn't feel fully American (she's distressed by the word "alien" describing her immigrant status). She works with a speech therapist at school. There is a mean girl in her class who bullies her about being different.
Stella has a great family. Her parents are divorced, and Dad isn't around much, but her mom and brother are super supportive and sweet. Stella has a best friend who is Vietnamese-American. Stella loves fish. Much of the book revolves around Stella building up to a class presentation about marine animals.
My daughter's favorite part was when Stella finally talked to the new boy Stanley without turning roja (getting red in the face). ...more
My husband and I had grown weary of my 5yo's obsession with Ramona Quimby, so we got her the Mya Tibbs series on audio to get her to try something newMy husband and I had grown weary of my 5yo's obsession with Ramona Quimby, so we got her the Mya Tibbs series on audio to get her to try something new. It worked! She's all about "good gravy in the navy!" now.
These books are definitely beyond the attention span of most 5yos but going through the entire Ramona Quimby series twice primed my daughter for it. I think she understands the stories pretty well. The plot is realistic and relatable. The themes are mostly handled in a lighthearted way. Mya has funny catchphrases like "soggy samosas!" and "boo-yang." Overall, it definitely falls on the younger end (ages 7 to 10) of the middle-grade spectrum (ages 7 to 14). ...more
Beautifully written and very engaging. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was superb. The cover art plus the grief theme made me expect a moBeautifully written and very engaging. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was superb. The cover art plus the grief theme made me expect a more solemn book, but King is a lively first-person narrator. The voice made me think of Bud, Not Buddy in the sense that kids experiencing hard times can still have an optimistic POV.
There is a connection here to another classic, A Wrinkle in Time, too. King and his brother discuss mindbending metaphysical stuff that will likely spark interesting discussions. In this way, it's reminiscent of Maybe a Fox. Both books ask a big question: What happens to our souls when we die?
This is the second middle-grade book I've read recently that dives into the intersection of being Black and being part of the LGBTQ community (the other one is The Only Black Girls in Town). Keep it up, kidlit publishers! ...more
Very good exploration of adolescent friendship. 7th grader Alberta's connection with her best friend Laramie is disrupted when Laramie starts hanging Very good exploration of adolescent friendship. 7th grader Alberta's connection with her best friend Laramie is disrupted when Laramie starts hanging out with a popular 8th-grade girl. At the same time, a new girl named Edie moves to their small town and Alberta finds that even though she and Edie don't have a lot in common (Edie is goth, Alberta a surfer) they bond over being the only Black girls in their grade.
Alberta has two dads and her birth mom comes to visit. This is woven into the story nicely. It's part of who Alberta is, but it's not the focus of the story.
Edie's parents are going through a divorce, which is the reason she moves with her mom from Brooklyn to California. This is also well integrated into the story.
Laramie is maturing faster than Edie (she gets her first period early in the book). It's understandable why Laramie would want to be friends with a popular older girl, even though the older girl is a bully.
There is a whole big subplot about a 1950s diary that Edie and Alberta read and investigate. This injects some history and mystery into the book. There are parallels between Constance the diarist and Alberta feeling isolated and different.
I was a little disappointed that Alberta was so perfect. Her only flaw is that she always orders the same ice cream. At the end of the book, when she (view spoiler)[finally changes up her ice cream order (hide spoiler)], it felt a little hollow to me. She does change over the course of the book because her friendships change and that's the strength of the story. ...more
This has a comfortable sitcom feel. I could almost imagine that familiar studio audience laugh track after each punchline.
I liked how well it establiThis has a comfortable sitcom feel. I could almost imagine that familiar studio audience laugh track after each punchline.
I liked how well it established the characters. By the end of the book, they felt familiar and I was looking forward to reading the next book in the series. Though all the characters are animals, some read as Muslim (Aziza wears a headscarf, another student is named Abdi).
Another thing I liked is that it was funny in a realistic, sweet sort of way. For example, one kid is taking a poll asking if the other students prefer ice cream or farts with genuine enthusiasm about making it a Venn diagram to include kids who like both equally.
I think this will be popular with third and fourth graders....more
I love all the stuff the sisters in this book love -- old movies, Jane Austen, pretending to be characters from old movies and Jane Austen. I should hI love all the stuff the sisters in this book love -- old movies, Jane Austen, pretending to be characters from old movies and Jane Austen. I should have loved this book, but it didn't have enough of a plot for me. The writing was lovely, but meandering. The stakes felt pretty low until almost the very end. It was enjoyable but not especially memorable other than Tate calling Plum Peach, which I thought was super cute.
Overall, it's a sweet, tame romance and a sort of update of Sense and Sensibility in the sense that it's mainly about sisters who are very different but best friends living in genteel poverty. ...more
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