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Blended

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By: Sharon Draper
New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2018. Fiction, p. 308

Have you ever felt like a favorite toy that is being fought over by two people? That is exactly how Isabella Badia Thornton feels every weekend when her parents do the exchange in front of the apple store in the mall. Switching back and forth between her divorced parents every week feels like "Whiplash". Isabella just gets used to one house then the week is over and she has to get comfortable in another house with different food, clothes and rules. If that wasn't hard enough she is is also struggling to figure out who she is. Eleven year old Isabella is biracial; her mom is white and her dad is black so what does that make her? People are always commenting:  "You're so exotic." "You look so unusual." "But what are you really?" She is struggling to define herself and find her place in the world.

This is an honest portrayal of a modern blended family done in true Sharon Draper style. The dialogue is realistic and the alternating chapters, Mom's week, Dad's week, helps the reader feel the conflict Isabella experiences as she goes back and forth between parents. A middle grade realistic fiction book that addresses real world issues.

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