BLENDED by Sharon Draper – An emotional and thought-provoking read

I didn’t know anything about this book when I reserved at my local library, but I just couldn’t put this down.

Description from the publisher…

Eleven-year-old Isabella’s parents are divorced, so she has to switch lives every week: One week she’s Isabella with her dad, his girlfriend Anastasia, and her son Darren living in a fancy house where they are one of the only black families in the neighborhood. The next week she’s Izzy with her mom and her boyfriend John-Mark in a small, not-so-fancy house that she loves.

Because of this, Isabella has always felt pulled between two worlds. And now that her parents are divorced, it seems their fights are even worse, and they’re always about HER. Isabella feels even more stuck in the middle, split and divided between them than ever. And she’s is beginning to realize that being split between Mom and Dad is more than switching houses, switching nicknames, switching backpacks: it’s also about switching identities. Her dad is black, her mom is white, and strangers are always commenting: “You’re so exotic!” “You look so unusual.” “But what are you really?” She knows what they’re really saying: “You don’t look like your parents.” “You’re different.” “What race are you really?” And when her parents, who both get engaged at the same time, get in their biggest fight ever, Isabella doesn’t just feel divided, she feels ripped in two. What does it mean to be half white or half black? To belong to half mom and half dad? And if you’re only seen as half of this and half of that, how can you ever feel whole?

It seems like nothing can bring Isabella’s family together again—until the worst happens. Isabella and Darren are stopped by the police. A cell phone is mistaken for a gun. And shots are fired.

Blended by Sharon Draper was published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers in 2018.

Why you want to read this book… 

Isabella is an engaging character with family problems that feel very real. I wanted to know what would happen, especially through the tension of wedding planning and preparing for her big performance. I also love learning from what I read and this story made me think about individual differences and racism.

Opening:

Plunk.

Plink.

Ripple.

Rumble.

Tinkle.

Boomble. I know that’s not an actual word, but it’s a real sound. I can create any musical combination of sounds on my piano. That’s my superpower.

If you’re a writer… 

What you’ll admire right away is the voice. Love the main character’s opinions on everything, and especially her own life and her family. It was really interesting the way the book was structured through Isabella’s calendar of days with her mom and days with her dad.

My sneakers are sinking into the soft muck of the flower bed. The smell of fertilizer makes me gag. I just want to keep sinking into the mud until I disappear forever.

If you’re an educator…

Many kids will relate to this story of being shuffled between two parents and two different cultures and backgrounds. What happens after Isabella and Darren get stopped by the police or even the very fact that they are stopped opens the door for class debate and discussion.

“I love you, Mom, but I’m not white. I never will be, and…I don’t want to be. Because the half of me that is Daddy is stronger.”

If you’re looking for another great list of middle grade books to read, check out Marvelous Middle Grade Monday on Greg Pattridge's blog.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday – THE GREAT TREEHOUSE WAR by Lisa Graff

I have always wanted a treehouse. Wouldn’t it make a great writing studio? I had so much fun reading this, I read it in one afternoon (on my deck, since I don’t have a treehouse, but I could pretend). 

 

Description from the publisher:

Winnie’s last day of fourth grade ended with a pretty life-changing surprise. That was the day Winnie’s parents got divorced and decided that Winnie would live three days a week with each of them and spend Wednesdays by herself in a treehouse between their houses, to divide her time perfectly evenly. It was the day Winnie’s seed of frustration with her parents was planted, a seed that grew until it felt like it was as big as a tree itself.

By the end of fifth grade, Winnie decides that the only way to change things is to barricade herself in her treehouse until her parents come to their senses—and her friends decide to join. It’s kids vs. grown-ups, and no one wants to back down first. But with ten kids in one treehouse, all with their own demands, things get pretty complicated! Even if they are having the most epic slumber party ever.

The Great Treehouse War by Lisa Graff was published by Philomel Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House, in 2017.

Why you want to read this book… 

Although the situation with Winnie’s parents and their exact schedules seemed pretty extreme, I think many kids will relate to feeling caught between two parents who aren’t getting along. And when the solution is making up your own rules and living in a treehouse – this whole scenario makes this book so much fun!

I really enjoyed the different personalities of Winne’s friends, and her cat, Buttons, but Winnie’s character and her predicament was what kept me reading to see how she would deal with her parents arguing (and not fail fifth grade!). This book also has lots of fun ‘sticky notes’ with comments from Winnie’s friends as well as ‘how-to’ instructions for different projects (e.g., making friendship bracelets).

“It turned out that having ten kids in a treehouse, without any adults to tell them what to do, was even better than Winnie could have imagined.”

If you’re a writer… 

It was really interesting to see how Lisa Graff incorporated all of Winnie’s ten friends, her parents, her uncle, her teacher and her cat into the storyline. That’s a lot of characters to worry about! The ‘sticky note’ comments help to reveal more of her friends’ personalities. A lot of humor in this story is created through the strategy of exaggeration and it’s very effective in making the story fun even though the underlying problem of feeling torn between divorced parents is a serious one.

“The book’s unlined pages seemed full of possibility, inviting Winnie to draw any doodle she wanted or tell any story that popped into her brain.”

If you’re a teacher…

This would be a great book to start discussions or projects about government and how countries are run. This might be interesting to read along with the picture books, Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran & Barbara Cooney (HarperCollins, 2004), and How to Build Your Own Country by Valerie Wyatt & Fred Rix (Kids Can Press, 2009).  I might encourage students to work in a group to create their own country, drawing designs and making up rules.

“Some folks—grown-ups, mainly—were horrified by the idea of children living in their own country, with nothing to stop them from doing whatever they wanted.”

Opening Line:

“There are a lot of things you should probably know to understand why a bunch of kids decided to climb up a treehouse and not come down.”

Other Info:

Lisa Graff is the author of several other middle grade books, such as A Tangle of Knots, A Clatter of Jars, Absolutely Almost and Double Dog Dare, among others.

Listen to an interesting interview with Lisa Graff about the book from Follett Learning #BehindtheBook

*In case you're wondering why you haven't seen any middle grade book reviews from me for a while, I've had several life-changing events happening in my life and it has been hard to find time to read any books at all. I'm excited and hopeful that I will catch up on my reading and writing this summer!