Bittersweet

by Winnie Mack

When Sam is diagnosed with diabetes, her whole world changes — can she learn to handle it?

Sam is a normal 12-year-old. She loves ice cream, sleepovers, Christmas, and her soccer team (future team captain). What doesn’t she love? Her super-annoying teenage brother, how her little sisters mess up the house and talk incessantly, and especially, how completely weird she is feeling.

Lately, Sam has been crazy hungry and thirsty. She’s tired all the time, and, most humiliating of all, she’s started wetting the bed like a baby.

One day, after a collapse at a soccer game, she wakes up in the hospital to find out she’s got Type 1 diabetes. Suddenly everything is different: not just her diet and the injections, but her relationships with her family and her friends. Will she learn to handle it?

This poignant story of a young girl coming to terms with a serious diagnosis, is a hopeful tale about overcoming life’s hurdles.

Genres: Middle Grade, Canada

216 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2016

About the author

Winnie Mack was raised in Vancouver, B.C. but now lives in Portland, Oregon. She also writes as W.C. Mack.

Reviews

[Stephanie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent story about a pre-teen girl learning to cope with the onset of Type 2 diabetes. Reminded of another good read on this subject, called “Sugar Isn’t Everything” by Willow Davis Roberts. “Bittersweet” was published in 2015, so methods of treatments and management are much more updated than in “Sugar”, having been written in the 80’s.
I particularly liked that both books showed how a diabetes diagnosis and learning how to manage it affects and needs to involve all family members.

[Kadi P]

(Recommended by AurorainBookland)

[Natasha Armstrong · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good read. My daughter was recently diagnosed with T1D and she was stoked to find this book in her school library. It was awesome for her to find a book where the main character is going through the same things that she has been, and even at the same age!
I would recommend this to any pre/early teens, especially anyone dealing with a diabetes diagnosis, as well as their friends and family.

[Stephanie Coleman]

I liked this book it didn't take me long to read it. but its not something I would usually read but I would recommend it to younger readers. pretty good book!!

[Rilyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was good.I was so into the book I couldn't put it down.

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book because my dad has diabetes and the girl in the book has it.

[Sarandon · Rating 1 out of 5]

the book was good and i found on of my words in the book !

[Chloe M · Rating 4 out of 5]

such a good book kinda left on a cliff hanger but overall really good wish i could know what happend at the end.

[alys · Rating 4 out of 5]

girl i thought i had diabetes for like months after i read this in the sixth grade

[Eva Shoffner · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book.

If you have not read this, you are missing out.

[Siina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just love Mack's books! I actually received Sokerimatsi from her, since the book was just translated into Finnish. I don't know anyone who can write preteens as well as Mack and Samantha and her friends are so real. The book is about girls, friendship, sports and diabetes. Samantha is twelve and loves playing football until her life changes drastically after she is diagnosed with diabetes. Now she and her her family needs to adjust and find ways to make everything work and of course, it changes a lot of things. The plot is quite simple and effective and Mack manages to write the whole diabetes thing not only credibly, but also so that it doesn't feel like superimposed or just an add-on. The topic is important and there's hardly any books about it even though diabetes is common.

I liked how Samantha confronts the problem, learns from it and grows as a character. Everyone in her family has a persona and the family functions well. Aiden is great too and his story is well combined with everything creating more content. The best part is that the book isn't a psychological quest, but more like everyday occurrences with the sickness and how kids manage these things - not well every time of course. The text is so fluent that you just end up devouring the book and it's such a pleasant read with a heavy topic that the outcome is almost perfect. I think I need to read the rest of Mack's books and get them to my library too, since she knows how to write good books for preteens without sounding condescending. Thank you, Mack!

[Dori · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing. It's so accurate in all the facts of signs and symptoms and treatments. I am a type 1 and it was refreshing to read something so on the ball. I've read a lot of books, I'm a librarian, with diabetes references in them and most of the time I roll my eyes. This one however was great. My only criticism was the doctor and parent reactions to the main character in times of struggle. Them showing anger when she failed to do certain things to treat her disease when its a normal part of reaching acceptance. I've been there and I guess it's pretty realistic but my parents never lectured me or shamed me, especially in the first few months of my diagnosis. Being diagnosed with a disease like Type 1 Diabetes is often compared to dealing with a death. 5 stages of grief which lead to acceptance of the new you.

But overall - I will recommend this to any young newly diagnosed type 1 I meet. Well done Winnie Mack.

[Lily S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly really enjoyed reading this book. The way the author portrayed Samantha’s story with diabetes with her struggles and overcomes with the struggles. The author also made her and her friends sound so realistic. Also, with what happened to her it all just seems really real and well detailed with how her life was before and to getting diagnosed. I didn’t like when her family would get upset and angry with her when she would be struggling.

[Skyla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think it was actually really good, I have never read anything like this to be honest, so i think it is actually amusing but in a.... different way. It is heart-tugging and it is basically all of the adjectives i could think of... in a good way. That's why i liked the book.

[Grace Castellucci · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the book. It show how easy Samantha's life was before she was diagnosed with type one diabetes. Then it shows her complicated life after. It also shows her overcoming fears and stones in her pathway.

[Leigh Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that did not wow me with the writing but has a topic that is typically not found in middle grade fiction, which is why I gave it four stars. This is the first book I have read about a character living with diabetes, and I think many of my students will enjoy reading it.

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fifth grade student wanted me to read this book because I am a pre-diabetic. I enjoyed it very much, and it actually gave me some insight into diabetes. I would recommend it to any child age 10-16 who lives with this disease. It is realistic, yet encouraging.

[Vardal · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's an awesome book I read it three times in a month and never get sick of it. I highly recommend it to anyone

[Veronica Furfaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worthwhile and kind of hard for me to read because EMOTION

[Ewaroni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE THIS BOOK very much likely a favorite!!

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

good

[Paige Magnani · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was a very interesting perspective by a Sammantha a girl who has a very interesting illness. And how she overcomes looking on the bad side, to looking on the bright side.