Reviewed by Olivia

Rating: High Five
Who I'd Recommend to: Fans of Jerry Spinelli, Pam Munoz Ryan's Paint the Wind, and anything Jacqueline Woodson.
Synopsis: 
When Jack Baker’s father sends him from his home in Kansas to attend a boys’ boarding school in Maine, Jack doesn’t know what to expect. Certainly not Early Auden, the strangest of boys. Early keeps to himself, reads the number pi as a story, and refuses to accept truths others take for granted. Jack, feeling lonely and out of place, connects with Early, and the two become friends. 
 
During a break from school, the boys set out for the Appalachian Trail on a quest for a great black bear. As Jack and Early travel deeper into the mountains, they meet peculiar and dangerous characters, and they make some shocking discoveries. But their adventure is only just beginning. Will Jack’s and Early’s friendship last the journey? Can the boys make it home alive? ​
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Reviewed by Olivia


Rating: High Four
Who I'd Recommend to: Fans of poetry books, Locomotion, Hokey Pokey, and Stargirl, as well as the Evolution of Calipurnia Tate
Fav Quote: 
Summary (from Amazon): 
Raised in South Carolina and New York, Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Touching and powerful, each poem is both accessible and emotionally charged, each line a glimpse into a child’s soul as she searches for her place in the world. Woodson’s eloquent poetry also reflects the joy of finding her voice through writing stories, despite the fact that she struggled with reading as a child. Her love of stories inspired her and stayed with her, creating the first sparks of the gifted writer she was to become.

Reviewed by Olivia.

Rating: High Three- I like it, and would recommend it to some
Who I'd Recommend to: People with a love of poetic writing- people who enjoy writing by Jerry Spinelli (Hokey Pokey, Stargirl, etc.). and who are okay with going a little deeper into the story to grasp the situation. 
Fav Quote: (Lili speaking) "And maybe when you find God, Lonnie, we can be together again." 
Summary (by Amazon)
When Lonnie was seven years old, his parents died in a fire. Now he's eleven, and he still misses them terribly. And he misses his little sister, Lili, who was put into a different foster home because "not a lot of people want boys-not foster boys that ain't babies." But Lonnie hasn't given up. His foster mother, Miss Edna, is growing on him. She's already raised two sons and she seems to know what makes them tick. And his teacher, Ms. Marcus, is showing him ways to put his jumbled feelings on paper.

Told entirely through Lonnie's poetry, we see his heartbreak over his lost family, his thoughtful perspective on the world around him, and most of all his love for Lili and his determination to one day put at least half of their family back together. Jacqueline Woodson's poignant story of love, loss, and hope is lyrically written and enormously accessible.