A review by sdertinger
Center of Gravity by Shaunta Grimes
4.0
Set in the 1980's, 7th-grader Tessa lives in Denver, Colarado with her dad. Her mother died of cancer a few months ago. Since then she's been struggling with her anxiety; she copes best with her milk cartons. The problem is that every time she sees a crate of milk cartons she has to flip over every single one in case she find a kid who she doesn't have in her collection. On the back of all milk cartons are the faces of children who are missing, courtesy of The National Center of Missing and Exploited Children. She has a collection of these kids and memorizes their faces and facts as if she went to school with them.
When things couldn't get worse, her dad has her go downstairs to meet someone. This someone happens to be Tessa's new 23-year-old stepmother because they are getting married, and she's pregnant. It takes a lot of courage and strength to take this head on. A lot of change is thrown at her all at once, including moving to California.
Along the way she learns a lot about herself, how to make friends, and how to go with the motions. Her feelings are up and down, left and right, but most of all she realizes that "it's okay".
What makes this story so different is the completely tangled up mess Tessa is fighting through. Even though this may seem like an extreme, I think a lot of kids can connect to this character. Loss of a friend, death of a parent, parent moving on, only child to a big sister, sense of belonging, keeping secrets that are hard to keep, and domestic abuse. I believe this book would be most appropriate for students in 6th grade through young adult.
When things couldn't get worse, her dad has her go downstairs to meet someone. This someone happens to be Tessa's new 23-year-old stepmother because they are getting married, and she's pregnant. It takes a lot of courage and strength to take this head on. A lot of change is thrown at her all at once, including moving to California.
Along the way she learns a lot about herself, how to make friends, and how to go with the motions. Her feelings are up and down, left and right, but most of all she realizes that "it's okay".
What makes this story so different is the completely tangled up mess Tessa is fighting through. Even though this may seem like an extreme, I think a lot of kids can connect to this character. Loss of a friend, death of a parent, parent moving on, only child to a big sister, sense of belonging, keeping secrets that are hard to keep, and domestic abuse. I believe this book would be most appropriate for students in 6th grade through young adult.