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2021 Mock Newbery Winning Selections
By Kristen · 14 posts · 266 views
By Kristen · 14 posts · 266 views
last updated Feb 16, 2021 02:44PM
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By Phil · 3 posts · 159 views
By Phil · 3 posts · 159 views
last updated Oct 07, 2020 08:24AM
What Members Thought
Um.
Wow.
Where to begin?
I started reading this Newbery Honor awarded middle grade book about sexual abuse *(I know, I know) and had to put it down. Uncharacteristically, I couldn't finish it in one sitting. It's heavy, and real, and important-but oh, how my heart hurt for Della and her sister Suki.
This is why Fighting Words, and other books that shine a light on what happens when the doors to houses close need to be put into our kids' hands. They need to see that they are not alone. They need the ...more
Wow.
Where to begin?
I started reading this Newbery Honor awarded middle grade book about sexual abuse *(I know, I know) and had to put it down. Uncharacteristically, I couldn't finish it in one sitting. It's heavy, and real, and important-but oh, how my heart hurt for Della and her sister Suki.
This is why Fighting Words, and other books that shine a light on what happens when the doors to houses close need to be put into our kids' hands. They need to see that they are not alone. They need the ...more
Kimberly Brubaker Bradley became one of my all-time favorite authors with her books The War That Saved My Life and The War I Finally Won, so when I saw she had a new book coming out, there was no question about whether I was going to read it.
Before reading, I was able to hear the author speak during a FB Live interview with one of my favorite authors/literacy advocates, Colby Sharp. It was so interesting to learn how this story came to be and the great lengths to which she went to make this sto ...more
Before reading, I was able to hear the author speak during a FB Live interview with one of my favorite authors/literacy advocates, Colby Sharp. It was so interesting to learn how this story came to be and the great lengths to which she went to make this sto ...more
Another novel that requires a mature young reader. Appropriate for older elementary and middle schoolers who need to know that these stories are being told and talked about. 10-year-old Della has been sexually abused. She and her older sister, Suki, are now in foster care where they're learning all kinds of things they've never known--what it means to have someone take care of you, be aware of you and think about what might help you begin to heal. Don't get me wrong, their foster care mother is
...more
Della is 10 and describing the story of her life. The story starts mostly at the end, but circles back to the beginning, which is when she and her big sister Suki are taken to a foster home. Suki has always taken care of Della and neither of them can bear the idea that this might change. Their new foster parent Francine is straightforward and the girls are clearly struggling with trauma, which unfolds as the story goes on. Della voice is strong and clear and compelling. I read this book in one s
...more
Nov 09, 2020
Dolores
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
courage,
friendship,
middle-grade,
strong-heroine,
bravery,
ya,
sisters,
siblings,
secrets,
crime
Della and Suki always had each other. Even though they didn't have parents, or live in a safe place. When the bad thing happens, the girls run to a friend and end up in foster care. But now that they are finally in a safe place, Suki can no longer push away the bad memories and begins to unravel. Will Della lose her beloved sister? And will she ever learn that words are better for fighting than her fists? This one is a must-read. The girls ultimately find that they have a lot of good people in t
...more
Such a tough book to read, but definitely needed in children’s literature.
Della and her older sister Suki move into foster care after escaping from an abusive home. Narrated by 10-year-old Della, the book follows the slow and complex healing process that survivors go through. An author’s note at the end includes context, advice, and study questions.
In a perfect world, elementary kids wouldn’t need a book about incarcerated parents, drug use, sexual abuse, and suicide. But the world isn’t perfect ...more
Della and her older sister Suki move into foster care after escaping from an abusive home. Narrated by 10-year-old Della, the book follows the slow and complex healing process that survivors go through. An author’s note at the end includes context, advice, and study questions.
In a perfect world, elementary kids wouldn’t need a book about incarcerated parents, drug use, sexual abuse, and suicide. But the world isn’t perfect ...more
So fantastic. Such heavy subject matter, but Bradley tackled the task of writing a book about child sexual abuse, suicide, and drug addiction for a middle grade audience and she. nailed. it.
As someone who has no great love for swearing, I especially loved her creative workaround for the fact that a ten-year-old who was in this kind of rough situation would almost certainly have been exposed to swearing and probably would have a few colorful words in her own vocabulary. How do you realistically w ...more
As someone who has no great love for swearing, I especially loved her creative workaround for the fact that a ten-year-old who was in this kind of rough situation would almost certainly have been exposed to swearing and probably would have a few colorful words in her own vocabulary. How do you realistically w ...more
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The author did a beautiful job of showing the effects of sexual abuse while not being too detailed. Della and Suki were obviously traumatized by their experiences but there is still a feeling of hope in the book.
Sep 06, 2020
Katy Marie
marked it as to-read
Jan 30, 2021
Scot
added it
Mar 22, 2021
Sara Card
added it
Jun 04, 2021
Susan
marked it as to-read
Jul 14, 2021
Sylena
marked it as to-read

















