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A review by cornmaven
Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead
3.0
This is a story about middle school, simply and elegantly told. Bridge nearly lost her life in 3rd grade, and carries the scars of that experience. She has lifelong friends who are changing just as she is, and the story revolves around how these kids navigate the changes, the valleys and hills, and the hard, hard process of learning how to make good decisions. These kids are still kids, they are caught in that middle zone land between childhood and teenage high school years.
So Bridge and her friends see-saw between acting grown up and acting childish. The writing is simple enough for 5-6th graders, but there is some thematic content, namely the issue of sexting, that put it more in the middle school level. I particularly liked the development of Bridge's and Sherm's relationship, as well as Bridge's discovering, slowly, that her friend Vinny from younger days is really a pretty mean girl, except for one instance.
These kids try to protect each other from mistakes, but mistakes they will make. Sherm is also dealing with the fact that his grandfather suddenly up and left his grandmother after 50 years of marriage. He can't make sense of it, and harbors a lot of anger toward his grandfather as a result.
The flow of this book is slow and steady. The high drama is tempered by Stead's talent - she's going to show you the drama but not let it take over. I liked that about this book.
NOTE: This review will appear on my library's social media book review channel in the near future.
So Bridge and her friends see-saw between acting grown up and acting childish. The writing is simple enough for 5-6th graders, but there is some thematic content, namely the issue of sexting, that put it more in the middle school level. I particularly liked the development of Bridge's and Sherm's relationship, as well as Bridge's discovering, slowly, that her friend Vinny from younger days is really a pretty mean girl, except for one instance.
These kids try to protect each other from mistakes, but mistakes they will make. Sherm is also dealing with the fact that his grandfather suddenly up and left his grandmother after 50 years of marriage. He can't make sense of it, and harbors a lot of anger toward his grandfather as a result.
The flow of this book is slow and steady. The high drama is tempered by Stead's talent - she's going to show you the drama but not let it take over. I liked that about this book.
NOTE: This review will appear on my library's social media book review channel in the near future.