From Newbery Honor Winner Cynthia Lord, a brilliant story about how to find home when everything around us is changing.(goodreads summary)
Eleven year old Mia is going through too many changes all at once. Her parents are divorced and her dad has a new wife and baby. Besides that, her mom and boyfriend Scott want to move to a new home and she has a difficult time when they need to get the house ready to sell. To help with all the mixed feelings, Mia will be staying with her Grandma in Stone Harbor, Maine for a month. Grandma calls it "a home away from home" and Mia is looking forward to spending alone time with her. But when she arrives, a new neighbor boy named Cayman seems to have made himself quite comfortable there. Mia now feels jealous and competitive for her attention. Her Grandma encourages her to make friends with him and the two go in search of the eagle's nest down by the lake. While there, an unexpected large white bird is seen fighting with the eagles. Never having seen a bird like this, Mia decides to post a picture of it online for information about what type of bird it could be. It is a rare bird sighting and she stirs up unwanted attention from several outsiders that she really didn't intend to. This ends up putting the bird in danger and her friendship with Cayman falling apart.
Here is a wonderful story from one of my many favorite middle grade authors, Cynthia Lord. It is heart felt and makes a great summer vacation read. It is fast paced and short enough to keep kids attention throughout. Readers will find themselves connecting with Mia's feelings easily about change, making mistakes and understanding she needs to find a way to fix them. Knowing that her actions caused unwanted consequences is a great learning opportunity for kids of this age. Mia's friendship with Cayman is tested numerous times and we also find out that his mom is battling substance abuse. The care and concern her grandmother expresses for Cayman and his mom shows what being a good neighbor means. There is plenty of information about birds throughout the story which is perfect for the bird enthusiast. Kids may pay more attention to the bird songs in their area from Mia's knowledge she shares. I found myself visualizing the small Maine town of Stone Harbor and the locals that lived there. What a beautiful "home away from home" place to be. This is a gentle story about accepting change, normal feelings kids feel, following rules, learning from our mistakes and correcting them, empathy and being part of a community. I think this is a "just right book" for ages 9-11.
Title: Home away from Home
Author: Cynthia Lord
Pub. date: April 2023, Scholastic Press
Genre: middle grade
Hardcover, 224 pgs.
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