Skip to main content

Review: The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman

Image
By

 

The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman 
By Gennifer Choldenko 
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2024. Fiction. 309 pages. 

Eleven-year-old Hank’s mom doesn’t come home one night, leaving Hank to care for his three-year-old sister, Boo. When it is almost a week later and mom still hasn’t come home, Hank decides to head to a Lou Ann’s house (a stranger that his mom has listed as his “emergency contact” on his school form). But with help from Lou Ann comes social workers and people asking Hank a whole lot of questions about his mom that he isn’t sure he can or wants to answer. 

This is a powerful story about a kid who loves fiercely. He loves his sister and is determined to do any hard thing to keep her safe. He loves his mom, even though he knows he can’t rely on her. And he is trying to decide if he can care about all the other people that come into his life who may disappear when the social services workers figure out what to do with him. This story made me laugh and cry. It made me think and want to stand up and love all the kids who need my help. It made me want more. More of Hank. More of Boo. More of me noticing what is happening around me. And more of recognizing what good things are happening in my life. This is a powerhouse of a book. Kids who want solid characters who are facing hard things with guts and determination will want to meet Hank and read what happens.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Fowl Play

By
  Fowl Play By Kristin O'Donnell Tubb New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2024. Fiction 277 pages. Still reeling from her beloved uncle's death, Chloe Alvarez is comforted and confused when at his last will and testament reading, Uncle Will gifts her his African Grey parrot, Charlie. Charlie has a robust vocabulary and loves to make Alexa requests for her favorite songs, but when she starts saying things like, "homicide," and "cyanide," Chloe becomes convinced that Uncle Will may have met his demise by murder instead of a genetic disease, as was previously thought. Ultimately, bringing in her brother, Grammy, and Uncle Frank (and of course Charlie,) Chloe's ragtag and adoring family support her search for answers ---going on stakeouts, engaging in fast pursuits, and searching for clues. But as the suspects stack up and the mystery grows, Chole will learn that the process of death and grieving is complicated, and in the end her Uncle Will's words that, ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: The Factory

By
The Factory By Catherine Egan New York, NY : Scholastic Inc., 2025. Fiction. 306 pages.  Thirteen-year-old Asher Doyle has been invited to join the Factory, a secretive research facility in the desert which ostensibly extracts renewable energy from the electromagnetic fields of its young recruits. But Asher soon realizes something sinister is going on. Kids are getting sick. The adults who run the Factory seem to be keeping secrets. And the extraction process is not only painful and exhausting, but existentially troubling. Asher makes a handful of new friends who help him with an investigation that turns into a resistance, which turns into...a cliffhanger! The Factory is a page-turning sci-fi with multidimensional characters, an intriguing plot, and refreshingly straight-forward writing. Egan weaves in detail about climate crises and social unrest, making the story's dystopian setting feel rich and plausible. With its sophisticated themes and accessible storytelling, I would recomm...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: A Game of Noctis

By
A Game of Noctis By Deva Fagan New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2024. Fiction. 310 pages. On the island of Dantessa, social standings and wealth are determined by your place in the Great Game. If you keep on winning, you can reap treasures, power, and security for yourself and your family; but if you lose too many games, you'll be exiled to Pawn Island and a life of servitude. That's what happens to 12-year-old Pia's grandfather. Due to poor vision, he struggles to see the games, but also can't afford new eyeglasses without winning. When his score falls to zero, he is sent away. Desperate to bring him back, Pia joins a ragtag group of misfits to form a team for the annual game of Noctis. The game requires contestants to perform dangerous challenges in front of a live audience, and no one outside the wealthy Diamond District has ever won. Each member of Pia's team, the Seafoxes, has their own reason to compete, but if they're going to win they'll h...
Post a Comment
Read more