Goodbye Stranger

Goodbye Stranger
by Rebecca Stead
Wendy Lamb Books, 2015. Fiction 289 p.

Bridge, Em and Tab have been best friends for as long as they can remember, but when they hit 7th grade, their friendship is challenged. Em gets a boyfriend and Tab discovers social activism. Bridge makes a new friend in Sherm, but doesn't quite know if their friendship is more than that. Everything blows up when Em feels pressure to text a risky picture of herself to her new older boyfriend. Does friendship mean doing what your friend wants you to, even if you know it is a bad idea? Each character faces challenges that threaten to overwhelm him/her, but the friends learn that if they support and help each other they can make it through. With amazing insight into modern early teen culture, Stead creates sympathetic characters caught up in the first whirlwind of adolescence. Stead won the Newbery with When You Meet Me and may well do it again with this one. This book is available in print, audio CD, ebook and e-audio formats.

Comments

Funny Farm by Mark Teague 2009

There are things I liked about Mark Teague's newest book, Funny Farm , and things I didn't like. Where should I start? I'll do the "didn'ts" first. The illustrations show animals personified. Well, some of the animals are. The main characters, Edward, and his farm family relatives, all dogs, are humanized. They stand upright, do farm chores, eat at a table, wear clothes, knit (yes, with paws) and sleep in beds. Most everybody else on and around the farm, who are also animals, act like animals. They are outside, roll in mud, live in the barn, and require care from their owners. It struck me the most on the page spread where there are pigs playing in puddle in the rain and Edward, a black and white boxer, watches from inside the house. I thought "You're a dog! Go play with them!" But, alas, he can't, seeing as how he goes through his entire visit to the farm wearing a suit and red bow tie. Another picture that bothered me was the maple syrup pa...

Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) by Pamela Espeland & Elizabeth Verdick

If there's one book today's kids need to read, it is Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) . The authors provide a fun format for teaching etiquette to children. They discuss proper behavior at home, at school, at other people's homes and in public places. The information is completely up-to-date with cellphone manners and netiquette included. Fun, cartoony illustrations are on practically every page giving the book great visual appeal. This book is perfect for boys and girls in the fourth grade or older. WARNING: Bodily functions are discussed.

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin Illustrated by Leslie Evans Charlesburg; 2009; unpaged Faces of the Moon is a short nonfiction book that describes the different phases of the moon and why the moon appears like it does on certain nights. This book is short and sweet so even the youngest of moon lovers will enjoy it. The layout is simplistic and easy to follow. I don’t know much about the moon so I found it very interesting.

Provo Library Children's Book Blog

Search This Blog