See You at Harry's in Mock Newbery 2026

Aug 01, 2013 Cat rated it it was amazing

Shelves: teen

So sad and wonderful.

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May 17, 2012 Kristin McIlhagga rated it really liked it

Shelves: middle-grade, net-galley, death, coming-of-age, friendship

Also Posted on my blog at http://childrenslitcrossroads.wordpre...

This past saturday I read See you At Harry’s by Jo Knowles. I noticed some buzz about this book over on twitter and requested to review it on NetGalley. I was not disappointed. I started Saturday morning and finished it this evening. Before dinner.

12-year-old Fern narrates this coming-of-age, contemporary realistic fiction story. She tells readers of her adventures, misadventures, growing pains and life growing up in a family who Also Posted on my blog at http://childrenslitcrossroads.wordpre...

This past saturday I read See you At Harry’s by Jo Knowles. I noticed some buzz about this book over on twitter and requested to review it on NetGalley. I was not disappointed. I started Saturday morning and finished it this evening. Before dinner.

12-year-old Fern narrates this coming-of-age, contemporary realistic fiction story. She tells readers of her adventures, misadventures, growing pains and life growing up in a family who owns a restaurant. For me, it’s her voice makes this story. Fern often feels as if she isn’t heard, that she doesn’t always have a voice (though she surprises herself a few times). What Knowles has done so masterfully is to write Fern’s voice in an honest, believable way. To me, this is a fine line (I’m sure this is due in part to the fact that I currently live with a middle school girl).

Fern’s tales of trying to navigate life with family and friends transcends age, family structure and even birth order. She is often a parent to her youngest brother Charlie, is the friend and confidant of older brother Holden, and sometimes feels like she has two mothers when her oldest sister Sara tries to “help”. Fern’s friends Ran and Cassie are the kinds of friends I long for my own children to have; loyal, supportive, and caring. When unexpected tragedy strikes, Fern and her family struggle together to make sense of life. Suddenly Ran’s mantra, “all will be well”, that has always calmed Fern is in jeopardy.

I’m not going to say a whole lot more about the plot because it is impossible to do so without spoilers. However, there are phrases that will make you laugh, others times you will hold your breath, and plot turns that will surprise you – tears will be involved, so be sure to have kleenex.

My two favorite parts of this book:

1. All of the children in Fern’s family are named for characters from books.
2. The opening line of the book, “The very best day of my life, I threw up four times and had a fever of 103 degrees.”

Check out the following links for more information:

Jo Knowles website, she is also on twitter @joknowles
Here is a fabulous interview with Jo on Libba Bray’s website
And yet another interview with Jo by Jen & Kellee over at Teach Mentor Texts
Over at Candlewick Press you can read the first chapter and listen to a sample of the audiobook ...more

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Aug 24, 2012 Wendy rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2012-award-possibilities

I didn't want to read this after I read the words "but when their lives are suddenly turned upside down" and "responsible for the devastating event that wrenches the family apart", but I was quickly drawn into the characters' lives. The writing is so good that even though I didn't want to read about any of this, I left feeling good. I'll be reading all of Knowles's books. ...more

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Aug 21, 2012 Dest rated it liked it

Shelves: audio, siblings, lgbtq, families, tween, death, sad

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. SAAAAAAAAAAD. Who writes a book for kids about a toddler dying? Seriously? Unless a kid or parent specifically asks for a book about dealing with a death, I probably won't be recommending this. It's just too depressing, which is a shame because the writing is clear and lovely. I will happily read another book by Jo Knowles, but I kind of regret reading this one. It put too many morbid thoughts in my head.

I'm not 100% opposed to death in children's fiction, obviously. When I think about Bridge t ...more

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May 31, 2012 Jess rated it really liked it

Shelves: juv, tear-jerkers

Going into this book, I knew it would be sad. It has the subject heading "grief - fiction" for crying out loud, plus I'd read several reviews before ordering it for the library and that gave me a heads up. But sometimes I'm just in the mood for a tear-jerker, so I picked it up and waited to see what would be so devastating.

The first half of the book is the story of a family dealing with the usual upsets of life, with the added hurdle of running a family restaurant. Narrator Fern feels like the i ...more

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May 24, 2012 Shannon rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2012

Are you kidding me? How can a book be this touching without being cheesy? Excellent. I appreciated that you couldn't really tell what race/ethnicity most of the characters were. As an only child, I can't really comment on the authenticity of the relationships depicted. Also, the cover threw me off a bit-- I thought this was going to be historical fic, not contemporary.

One other question, do teachers really drink booze from thermoses these days? ...more

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Jun 02, 2012 Deanna rated it really liked it

Shelves: juvenile-fiction, ya, grief, 2012, family

2012 seems to be the year of the tear-jerker and this one is no exception. While I liked this story, there were times when the story line felt forced.
Give to kids who clamour for sad books.

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Feb 20, 2012 Karen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: character-study, mg-chapter, great-characters

Wow!! Just wow! What a powerful book, with so many great messages, it's hard to wrap my head around all of them. Everyone that warned me I needed Kleenex were definitely telling the truth. Love the resolution at the end. ...more

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