VVMBookBlog

Halfway to the Sky by Kimberly Brubaker-Bradley

Katahdin (Dani) is named after a mountain on the Appalachian Trail. Her brother has recently died at the age of 13, and her parents have recently divorced. Dani runs away from home after doing research on hiking. She plans to hike the Appalachian Train (from Georgia to Maine — over 2,000 miles) partly because it is where her parents met. The first day on the trail, she meets a boy whom she calls “Beagle.” Hiking is extremely difficult, but she does not give up. Unfortunately her mother finds her early in the hike and wants her to go home immediately. After some conflict the two decided to continue (for awhile) together. This in itself is complicated.

When I first saw the cover of this book, I wasn’t impressed. Honestly, it seemed a bit childish. I was surprised. The book actually is an adventure novel with real family problems. “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”

The Broken Bike boy and the Queen of 33rd Street by Sharon Flake

The main character’s name is Queen, and she acts like she is royalty. It only took a few pages before I thought she was a spoiled brat. I didn’t think her parents were helping her by naming her Queen because she uses it to be snobbish and rude. She calls her classmates and teachers her “subjects” which they do not like. Queen knows she is smart and always is informing people of her intelligence. When a new boy moves to town, she is mean to him because according to her he smells like pee. Her best friend, and only friend, moves and Queen realizes the new boy is interesting. Because she has been mean to him, and everyone else at school, she has a difficult time finding friends although she still thinks she is a royal Queen and is unkind to everyone. This is a short novel about friendship and understanding.

Sharon Flake is also the author of The Skin I’m in, Money Hungry, Begging for Change, Bang!, and Who am I without Him. The Broken Bike Boy and the Queen of 33rd Street is the easiest read of her books.