Blended by Sharon M. Draper - ESSENTIAL

Blended by Sharon M. Draper - ESSENTIAL

elementary upper elementary upper essential elementary upper high family ties high middle school middle school essential middle school high

Blended by Sharon M. Draper, 308 pages.  Atheneum (Simon), 2018.  $17.  

Content: PG (does mention a noose, a shooting).

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Isabella, 11, is never quite sure where she fits in.  She goes to the same school every day, but one week she lives at Dad’s and the next week she is at Mom’s – neither place feels like home.  Also, she is one of those “mixed” kids – a blend that feels neither black nor white.  Drama at school and anger between her parents make it hard for her to find her footing.

Draper saves the most dramatic, heart-wrenching, and unfortunately too common, scene for the very end.  Isabella’s story can easily read up, at least to middle school.  Students all over will connect with Draper’s look at divorce, blended families, blended kids, and life while not white, and will not forget it any time soon.  Easily a classroom novel and /or read aloud for lots of great discussion.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

What Momma Left Me by Renee Watson - ADVISABLE

What Momma Left Me by Renee Watson - ADVISABLE

advisable average family ties high school middle school

What Momma Left Me by Renee Watson, 240 pages.  Bloomsbury, 2019.  $18. 

Language: G; Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Serenity’s mom is dead, her dad is nowhere to be found, and now she and her younger brother Danny are living with their mom’s parents – not their dad’s momma.  Starting at a new school isn’t easy, but Serenity makes a friend and is kind of interested in a boy.  But does she want to go down the same path that her Momma took?  Can she stop an angry Danny from trying out the same shortcuts as Daddy?  Scan she be a good friend when Maria needs her?

Watson leaves the reader with plenty of space to speculate as she ushers Serenity hopefully towards a better future.  Nothing is wrapped up in a tidy bow, but there is optimism.  Watson tackles many difficult issues, but infers the harsher behaviors, leaving it up to the reader to decide how graphic to paint the pictures. This means that the book is open to a younger audience as well as story that can be appreciated by older students. 

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS