On the outside, Veronica is getting ready to focus her life onto making the All-Stars softball team, following in her mom's footsteps and cementing her close friendship with Claudia, while staying away from snooty Libby. But her family has big problems and they're about to throw her life off balance. Veronica's mom drinks, a lot. No matter how often she says she can stop, she doesn't until she has to attend rehab and finally admits she's alcoholic. Veronica is lost and bewildered, angry at her mother for not being there for her, frustrated with her father being unwilling to tell her what's going on, and struggling with making decisions about what she wants to do especially when her dad tells her that even if they make the team there might not be enough money for All-Stars.
Although Veronica feels unable to confide in Claudia, whose parents are getting divorced, she finds an unexpected bond forming with Libby, who turns out to be understanding about what she's going through and, once Veronica starts to get to know her, she realizes she's changed a lot from when they were younger. The two start to work together on a number for the talent show, at first with the idea of getting money for Veronica to play All-Stars, but as time goes on Veronica starts to wonder if she really wants to join the elite team.
Although there are no easy answers, Veronica is able, eventually, to speak up for herself, be honest with her friends, and look forward to a better future. Therapy and a support group help, as does her parents' willingness to also make an effort at better communication and honesty. The story switches between play-by-play narration of softball games and the emotionally-driven story of a girl dealing with a painful fissure in her family.
Verdict: This is very much a story I'd give to a middle school reader who liked "serious" or "issue" novels but isn't ready for the more intense language and events of young adult. The inclusion of sports, especially Veronica's feelings about loving the sport but not wanting to play competitively is nicely done and although her family is financially privileged, even when her dad thinks money might be "tight" many kids can still relate to Veronica's feelings and struggles. Recommended.
ISBN: 9781250619730; Published February 2021 by Feiwel and Friends; Purchased for the library
2 comments:
The difference between YA and MG, for me, often comes down to how complaining and introspective the book is (that's more YA; MG has more action and plot) and how small the type is! Also, if it's over 300 pages and not fantasy, it often is more YA. This is a solid middle SCHOOL book. (grades 5-8)
Yes, I've gone around and around on having a separate middle school/tween section, but I just can't see it, space-wise especially. I get a lot of people looking for younger chapter books and confused they're in with the juvenile, so I think where I'm headed is
- juvenile beginning chapters (no more than 150 pages, approximately up through 3rd grade)
- juvenile fiction - ages 9-12
- young adult fiction - 13+
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