Holly Goldberg SloanCríticas

This was a beautiful story; I loved the ending, it was the perfect ending for everyone. This story made me feel all the emotions and I cannot wait to read more of Holly Goldberg Sloan's work in the future.

This was a great little book. Pulled me right in from the beginning. I was a little worried around chapter 6 or 7 that I was starting to really dislike the main character, but it got much better around chapter 13 again. I'd consider reading this book aloud to my class, but it's a bit longer than the usual book.

This book is about a girl who is born "gifted" but faces many difficulties in her own life and must be resilient. This book is touching, emotional, and wonderfully crafted while it deals with labels in the classroom, struggles, and resilience.

- Middle School

- About a girl who is gifted and then loses both her parents in a car accident. She then navigates her life being an orphan and rediscovers herself. She also changes many people's lives along her way.

- I loved this book. It was deflierty bitter sweet, so I would have it in my classroom for people to read but would not read aloud.

This chapter book goes into depth from a young girls perspective on her life as she is grieving the loss of her adopted parents and decides she doesn't want to be gifted anymore. There are themes of fighting the feeling of wanting to be invisible and vulnerable. In the end there are glimpses of hope that the girls life can return to how it was before, although she will never be the same girl as she was before this happened.

I absolutely loved this book. I can think of many uses for many intermediate and advanced readers. The ideas in this book can be extremely relatable for students at this age and also bring empathy towards people who are gifted. I would love to reread this book and use it in a future classroom.

A kids book told through a series of emails.

I saw a few reviews about how this was like a modern version of The Parent Trap and when I saw it in sale I couldn’t resist picking it up.

Super cute, funny, nice lessons about how family isn’t just about biology.

One of the best books I have read in a very long time. Beautifully crafted. Highly recommended. We are living in a golden age of YA fiction!

Sappy and over-the-top, this is everything I want from a summer read, I have already recommended it to 3 different tweens.

5 starts for endearing characters and for making me laugh out loud.
-1 stars for being a weird book with adult jokes and themes, not "adult" like xxx, but more with adults who are barely functional and a lighthearted treatment of his alchoholism and hoarding.
-1 star for mild fat phobia and diet talk. Kids books don't need to do that.

First of all, it was hilarious to me that the audiobook narrators had to read so many re's (as in "Subject: Re: Re: Re: You Don't Know Me"). It went from funny to annoying to funny again as the re's piled up. It must be a great audiobook if all the re's didn't make this too annoying to continue listening.

Overall, I thought this was just delightful. I love that the girls each had distinct voices and their emails showed us their personalities so well. Sometimes epistolary novels can have these clunky moments when the author is inserting exposition. This novel let each character's voice shine while conveying the plot in a believable way.

There aren't too many fun middle grade novels about kids with gay parents, so this immediately became my favorite (supplanting [b:The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher|18769869|The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher (Family Fletcher, #1)|Dana Alison Levy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1391311284l/18769869._SX50_.jpg|26668105]).

I really, really didn't like the first few chapters of this. The narrator, Willow Chance, was too obviously and intensely quirky. Also, it bothered me that on page 3 she says, "...and all I know for certain, with the sun on our faces and the sweet ice cream holing our attention, is that this is a day that I will never forget." Because how does Willow know, in that moment with the sun on her face and the ice cream in her hand, that she will always remember that day? It didn't make sense to me because it's before she knows her parents were killed. This first chapter is told in present tense and it really annoyed me that the author either made Willow psychically know that the day was going to be unforgettable, or (more likely) goofed. I've re-read the first chapter several times and I find it hard to get over this, but I'd be happy to hear from a reader who thinks it makes sense. The only explanation I can come up with is that Willow thinks in that moment it's a day she'll never forget because she's eating ice cream with her new friend Mai. But that seems pretty dramatic. I'm convinced it's a goof.

Is that nit-picky? I would say yes. Because as the book went on I liked it more and more. Especially when the perspective shifted to close third person with other characters (I needed a break from Willow's robot voice). By the end, I was really rooting for Willow and Mai and Quang-ha and Pattie and Jairo, and even Dell.

A great read-alike for [b:Wonder|11387515|Wonder|R.J. Palacio|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1366213431s/11387515.jpg|16319487] and [b:Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree|464956|Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree|Lauren Tarshis|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1347592223s/464956.jpg|453360]. I don't think this is a Newbery contender for me because many of the plot elements came off pat and unrealistic, even when they were sweet and rousing. This novel shines in terms of great characters and its aching portrayal of bereavement and rejuvenation.

written very well and tugs at the appropriate heartstrings. It's about loss and growth and family

To Night Owl from Dogfish is an epistolary novel, written mainly in email and text messages, but some real letters too.

The two main leads (Bett and Avery) are 12-year old girls, one living in NYC, one in CA. They each have a single gay dad and their dads' relationship throws the girls together, reluctantly, with unexpected results.

I listened to the audiobook and the narrators were great!
My only criticism was of the reading of the email messages when there were TONS of replies to the same thread. The narrators read out EVERY single "Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:". It had me praying for a change in the Subject line! If I had read the novel, I would have just skipped reading all of those "Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:"s. I wish there was a vocal equivalent to that skip:-)

An amazing tale of how people can survive real tragedy with grace and grit, and how those (and those of us) who are octagonal pegs that don't fit into any "hole", can make their own place and way in life.

Loved this book . . . great characters and engaging style. Another awesome recommendation from my daughter!

Willow tiene doce años, es superdotada y su gran pasión son las plantas, las enfermedades y el número 7. Sus padres adoptivos son su única familia y sus verdaderos amigos, pero cuando éstos mueren en un accidente se cuenta de que está sola en un mundo con el que no es capaz de relacionarse.

fiction - alternating narratives by a widowed Welsh mom and her three kids (14, 12, 7 yrs) moves from Oregon to become owner of run-down motel in Hawai'i (near small coastal town on Big Island) and start a new life.

I liked that the 7 year old Sena, in her intense interest for learning and respecting all things, becomes a voice for paying attention to Hawai'ian customs and history. I'm sure a native author might have different things to say about this mainlander family taking over a property that had been managed by locals for so long, but the author did try to be respectful (and honestly, even if they'd moved to a remote town on the East coast instead, they still would've been benefitting from colonialism.

The dad's reappearance wasn't a surprise (his death at sea was mysterious, no body was found, and he was intelligent enough to have made some sort of plan), nor was the hurricane, but the ending was ok, despite its being conveniently tidy. Compared to HGS's other books, I found this a tiny bit underwhelming, but I still enjoyed it and the likeable kid characters.½

Although the main character is 12, people of all ages will find themselves thinking about this book long after they have read it.

Sweet story about finding self and family, even after tragedy. There were some good parts, and then there were stretchess that seeemed to take forever to get through. Not sure my students will have the interest or stamina to make it to the end.

When Willow is diagnosed with a medical condition, she finds comfort in counting by 7s. This book deals with loss, grief, and tragedy but also shows empowerment and strength. I believe this book would be great to have in a classroom to help kids deal with and undertsand hardships in life.

This book is about a twelve-year-old girl who is fascinated by anything with seven. She is also fascinated by plants and medicine. This is a good book for a teacher to have because it correlates with math and science.

A bright ten-year-old girl, with many problems, which she mostly solves, with help. This is a good story.

I think I'm getting too far past having young kids to reliably rate middle-grade books anymore. It was okay, but I didn't love it. The narrator's voice (audio book) was a little grating.

Realistic fiction #1

Super cute book and a fun twist on “The Parent Trap.”