HOLD FAST TO DREAMS

IS IT NEWBERY WORTHY? 

Everything changes in the blink of an eye for 11 year old Early Pearl and her family.  One minute they’re laughing and playing, dreaming about making a home in Chicago and the next minute Early’s father, Dash, has disappeared, leaving the Pearl family struggling to stay afloat and making their way through the city’s homeless shelters. There are many questions swirling around Dash’s disappearance:  Was he kidnapped?  Who is the mysterious “Al” that Dash was working with?  What do they know about the world largest diamond heist that happened half a world away and nearly a decade ago?

Early channels her father’s love of language and literature and sets out in search of clues. Everywhere she turns there are hidden clues, from the rhythm of Langston Hugh’s poetry to secrets hidden away at the Chicago Public Library. It’s a race against the clock as Early delves deeper and deeper into her father’s disappearance.

Like her other outstanding novels for young readers, Hold Fast by Blue Balliett  is a great read for someone who loves a good mystery and can appreciate the power of language.  

Grades 5 and up

Read another review of this book by Lyda.  

HOMELESSNESS IS THE NEW VAMPIRE

Lately, I've read three or four books featuring families that fall on hard times and find themselves homeless, struggling on the streets, and ending up in shelters.  So I was curious when the great author Blue Balliett decided to cover this topic in her new book Hold Fast.  

Early and her family live in a small apartment collecting words and poetry when her father isn't off working as a library page (someone who shelves the books).  His love of language is his great connection to his daughter Early and they all fantasize about the day when they will have their own house to fill with their favorite words.  All Early's dreams are shattered one day when her father mysteriously disappears, mean men come and ransack their apartment, and her mother carts Early and her brother off to the homeless shelter.  While her mother does her own detective work, Early tries to unravel the threads cloaking her father's disappearance and keeping a cool head. 

Balliett achieves another poetic masterpiece, and is a great read for grades 5 and up. 

JUNE 2013

DOGS CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE IN SURPRISING WAYS!

Sugar Mae Cole has a father who's never there.  Her mom keeps taking him back, and then he just breaks her heart again and again. After her grandfather died, things have been getting worse for her and her mother, but at least Sugar Mae has a positive attitude and can let her thoughts flow in her writing.  The best day to come along is when Sugar Mae is given Shush, a shy puppy who's owner couldn't keep her. The worst day is when Sugar Mae, Shush, and her mother get evicted from their home and have to live in their car.  ALMOST HOME by Joan Bauer is an emotional story, with a lot of entertaining characters weaving in and out of Sugar Mae's life.  Despite all the things that go wrong, though, everyone tries to look on the bright side and make the best of things. 

For grades 4 and up.

MARCH 2013

THREE STRIKES, YOU ARE OUT!

Gregory and his mother, little sister Jeanine, and imaginary friend Joey USED to live on a Navajo reservation. Now they live in a motel. Only his new friend Matt, in his new school, tells him its really a shelter, not a motel, and if they're not careful, Mr. Hass will give them three strikes and they're out! Not in the baseball way! The only saving grace for Gregory and his new set of circumstances is art class, where he can escape from all the problems and worries he has to deal with. BIRD SPRINGS by Carolyn Marsden is a quick read for a reluctant reader that's complex and adventurous enough for any reading level. For grades 4 and up.