Starting From Scratch: A Wish Novel

by Jazz Taylor

From the author of Meow or Never, a story about blended families, anxiety, and how a fresh start can be just what you need... even when you least expect it.

Janie believes there's a best way to do everything. When she sticks to a schedule, she and her mom can tackle anything. But Janie's perfect schedule -- and her life -- are getting shaken up this year. Her new stepmom, Keisha, and her daughter, Makayla, are moving in with Janie and her mom.



Worst of all? Makayla brings a cat with her. And Janie hates cats.



Even though it's hard, Janie tries to welcome Makayla to her new school. And honestly, she maybe does too good a job. Soon, Makayla is volunteering with Janie's beloved Sunshine Club, and Janie's friends all love her. The only one who pays any attention to her anymore is Makayla's nosy cat. It feels like her new sister is taking over! What's a gal to do with a copycat in her life?

Genres: Mental Health, LGBT

148 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 4, 2023

Reviews

[Anniek · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an adult, I will always read middlegrade, because it has such a way of healing your inner child. But most of all, I hope the anxious kids who need this book will find it.

After Janie's mum gets married, she suddenly has a new stepmum and stepsister who move in with her and her mum. And that's not all: her stepsister also brings her cat, while Janie is very scared of cats.

Janie already struggles with change, and she very anxiously sticks to a set schedule on which she's planned out every day for the year ahead. It was deeply relatable to see Janie go through all these changes and have to figure out if she can adapt to them and if she can let go of the schedule she so strongly depends on. It's a very emotional story, and one I think can help a lot of children who struggle with change, because of mental health, neurodivergence, or other reasons.

I also really loved seeing a non-binary side character here. Dani is Janie's best friend, and they've come out to Janie the year before, but are still figuring things out as well. I loved seeing a coming out narrative that wasn't linear - Dani felt ready to come out to Janie a year earlier, but they didn't feel like they were fully ready to claim they/them, and they didn't feel ready to come out to their parents before.

[Manon the Malicious · Rating 5 out of 5]

*4.75 Stars*

Janie has been through a lot. Her mom hasn't always been reliable so she has made a schedule and everyone has to stick to it. Problem is, her mom just got married, so her wife, Keisha is moving in with her daughter Makayla and, now, no one is respecting the schedule and Janie is not feeling so well about it all.

This was a lot at times, it hit a little too close to home but I still loved it. This talks about anxiety a lot but also friendship, family and more. I had a bit of trouble getting through some of it but it wasn't because of any fault in the book, on the contrary, it was, to me, because it felt so true, almost too true.
I really fell for the main character, she was captivating and I felt such anger in her behalf. I even cried a little at some point.
basically, I really loved this one, and I can't wait to read more books by Jazz Taylor.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book ever!!!!!!!!! I love it😍

[Jeffrey A. Nappi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disguised as a cat book, this is really a LGBTQ book about an alternative lifestyle step family, mixed with an introduction to gender identity, and should be labeled as such

[Antonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Checked out from library months ago from work and just getting to it. Queer family rep (two moms and the main character’s bestie is non-binary) which summary doesn’t mention at all. I was actually shocked by how much I liked this MG and will be recommending it to a few kiddoes/teachers I know.

[Chiara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe more like 3.5

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Janie is very devoted to her schedule, which plans her routines down to the minute. These are disrupted when her mother marries and her new stepmom, Keisha, moves into their house. Janie does acknowledge that she doesn't have it as hard as her new stepsister, Makayla, who has to change schools, but she still struggles with keeping things together. She does get support from her best friend, Dani, but Dani is working through issues as well. Dani identifies as nonbinary, and has used she/them pronouns, but has decided that they/them feels more comfortable. Janie supports this, but Dani does have some trouble at home. Janie's biggest trouble at home is Makayla's cat, Pumpkin, whom she intensely dislikes after having cat-related trauma as a child. At school, Janie enjoys working with the Sunshine Club and doing community service like visiting a local nursing home where she has made several friends. When the position of club president opens up, Janie is excited to run, but when Makayla also decides to do this, it further complicates both school and family life. Will Janie, Makayla, AND Pumpkin all be able to work together to make their new family successful?

Strengths: It's good to see a character acknowledge that cats are evil and want to kill us all. No, it's good to see a WISH novel with cats, since there are a number by J.J. Howard that feature pugs. Janie's devotion to her schedule is handled well by her mother and Keisha, who do try to work with her in a sympathetic way. Janie is not identified with any labels, but does appear to have some neurodivergent characteristics. I especially liked that she was not averse to Keisha or Makayla, and thought that they were in general a good addition to her family, but she still had some issues to work through. This was a well-paced, quick read, and the cat on the cover will entice many readers!
Weaknesses: While it was good to see the inclusion of nonbinary and gay characters, some of the information was presented in more of an "info dump" fashion rather than occurring naturally in the story.
What I really think: Like Taylor's Meow or Never, this will appeal to readers of WISH novels who want stories a bit lighter on romance but with more diverse characters. WISH novels have long included characters from different ethnicities and cultural backgrounds, so it is not surprising that they are now adding LGBTQIA+ characters. These are available in prebinds from Follett, and will probably be appearing in book fairs, where they will be popular choices.

[Books + J = ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay so, I used to love reading "wish" books when I was younger. Thought I'd pick up one I haven't read yet for old times sake. However, this one kind of disappointed me. The main character was kind of prickly and there wasn't a lot to make me change my mind and like her. Towards the end when she stood up for lgbtq+ friend I liked her a little more but overall she was just kind of like that one annoying friend you can't seem to leave. I really didn't have a lot of sympathy for her. The story line was fairly predictable. It was an okay book. I think my rating is more out of nostalgia and love for books and these books specifically than anything. Took me 2 ish days to get through... would probably recomend to anyone unde the age of 11 however anyone else, I wouldn't necessarily recommend it but I also wouldn't say anything super negative about it. I have a few others from the series on my TBR to see if there all like this so stay tuned. But other than that, Yeah. It was okay.

[Ryn Lewis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Downgraded from three to two stars because I found this story very disturbing. We have a parent with a mental illness being parented by a very traumatized twelve-year-old when their entire family situation changes and every adult in the room completely ignores the red flags this child is sending out saying that she is struggling to cope. The excuse that she was such a responsible kid was a band-aid. Mom with mental illness might theoretically have ... not a pass, but I might see how she would blow off her daughter's problem, but Janie explained everything to stepmom. Stepmom seems to be basically the only mentally healthy character in the book and received a HUGE heads-up and still let Janie fall into full implosion. Lots of happy Band-aids at the end that sounded great but in reality are likely to equate to little follow-through, and this story was just way too heavy for the cutesy marketing it received and the sitcom hug it out ending.

[Leo · Rating 5 out of 5]

TW: anxiety, OCD characteristics, mentions of bullying, child having to parent adult

I can't even begin to say what healing this book brought me. As a child who had to care for their parent, as a person who has anxiety and ocd/intrusive thoughts, as a non-binary person who went on the same journey Dani did, and especially as a disabled parent to a kid who is having major life uphevals, but I figured they were strong enough to handle, when they actually have opened up that they need support. Basically, I related to all the characters and learned from each one, and each one has helped heal a tiny piece of my soul.

[Danielle McEnery · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book cuz my little brother got it for me at a book fair. He saw the cat and thought of me. Being an adult, the language was super "young" so I wasn't super into it, but the target audience is clearly elementary/middle school kids. It definitely has relatable topics in it and revolves a lot around adjusting to a new parent and sibling. It also tackles some friendship drama. It has some tactfully placed lgbtq topics. One of the characters is nonbinary, and the parents are both women. It felt a little out of place in a children's novel, but I'm not against it.

[Shannon (That's So Poe) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such an intense, excellent middle grade about anxiety and dealing with change. I loved the way that it tackles the challenges of blending a family, especially for two new siblings who have to figure out how to balance each of their personalities and needs. There are a lot of things that go wrong, but everyone works to figure out how to be a family together and ensure everyone's needs are met.

Content Warnings:
anxiety, bullying, gender essentialism

[Anya Darbinyan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, it was a good book. But I wouldn't say it's the best. This book had some ups and downs. I love the story but there's one part about the book's characters that I don't feel comfortable with. I showed this book to my mom and she read a couple of pages. She didn't like it. I liked the growth of Janie and that she like HATED cats, but bonded with Pumpkin.

[Christian · Rating 1 out of 5]

The cute cat on the cover is deceitful to young innocent children. This book immediately dives into the homosexual relationship between the main character's mother and another woman and their upcoming marriage, it's ideology and hidden agenda. Sad and disappointed.

[Phoebe Casale · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was good. The story made me want to read more and more. The characters and storyline are great. Even though it was a little easy for me and want to read another book from this author.

[Aaru · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good book has drama needs a little more

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 star
This was a cute and heartwarming story about adorable cats, accepting change, and welcoming new people into your life with love and an open mind.

[Juliet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book so so so so so much!!