Shaye Miller's Reviews > The Great Jeff

This is the story of 8th grader, Jeff Hicks. He’s in a bad situation, but none of it is his fault. His father left Jeff and his mom, his best friend ditched him, his mom drinks too much and lost yet another job, and they’re being kicked out of their home. Oh, and did I mention that he’s having to attend public middle school because they cannot afford his tuition for St. Catherine’s?

This one was tough to read at times, but there were valuable lessons on friendship, forgiveness, and family. And I honestly laughed until I had tears in my eyes during some of the middle school banter. There were times during my childhood when I felt like we didn’t have money and that I didn’t fit in, but I never experienced this level of fear and uncertainty — of not knowing when I could eat or where I was going to sleep or if my parents would take care of me. The Great Jeff offers an important window and mirror on poverty and family dysfunction for today’s readers.

For more children's literature, middle grade literature, and YA literature reviews, feel free to visit my personal blog at The Miller Memo!