Here in the Real World

Here in the Real World
By Sara Pennypacker
Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2020. 308 p.

Ware is a total introvert. He is excited to spend his summer vacation with his grandma in Florida where she won’t care if he spends long hours alone by the pool doing pretty much nothing. Only when his grandma has an accident and is taken by ambulance to the hospital, Ware is taken home and signed up for a Summer Rec program—which he hates. Instead of going into the community center Ware starts to head to the vacant lot next door after his mom drops him off. There he meets Jolene who is trying to garden and keep all her secrets. Ware loves knights and medieval chivalry, so he tries to transform the church building ruins on the lot into a castle. Meanwhile Ware learns from Jolene (and Ashley who comes and goes through the lot as well) what is fair, what is right, and what happens in the real world. Ware is a good boy with a heart in the right place. He is very shy and doesn’t totally understand how to interact with others, but he does have a heart of gold and tries his best to look for the good and right in the world around him. Readers will cheer Ware on as he tries his best to make the real world the best place it can be.

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