THE FRIENDSHIP WAR by Andrew Clements –A story of friends, buttons and economics

I’ve been wanting to read this book for a while. I was so intrigued by the concept of a story about buttons!

Description from the publisher…

Stickers, Silly Bandz, Rainbow Looms, fidget spinners . . . buttons?! A brand-new school story about friendship and fads from the bestselling author of Frindle.

This is war. Okay–that’s too dramatic.

But no matter what this is called, so far I’m winning.

And it feels wonderful.

Grace and Ellie have been best friends since second grade. Ellie’s always right in the center of everything–and Grace is usually happy to be Ellie’s sidekick. But what happens when everything changes? This time it’s Grace who suddenly has everyone’s attention when she accidentally starts a new fad at school. It’s a fad that has first her class, then her grade, and then the entire school collecting and trading and even fighting over . . . buttons?! A fad that might also get her in major trouble and could even be the end of Grace and Ellie’s friendship. Because Ellie’s not used to being one-upped by anybody. There’s only one thing for Grace to do. With the help of Hank–the biggest button collector in the sixth grade–she will have to figure out a way to end the fad once and for all. But once a fad starts, can it be stopped?

The Friendship War, written by Andrew Clements, was published by Random House Children’s Books in 2019.

Why you want to read this book… 

The subject of buttons caught my attention right away. I could understand how the kids in the story got interested in trading and collecting them. I have a couple of jars of them, right in my home office, because they’re kind of cool. (Ssh! Don’t tell anyone but I may break out some stretchy elastic and make myself a button bracelet tonight.)

It was really interesting how the buttons became a fad and created so much conflict between the kids in the story. I also really liked Grace’s personality. She was a kind person trying to do the right thing and thinking about how her actions affected others.

Opening:

Flying from Chicago to Boston by myself hasn’t been as big a deal as my dad said it was going to be. But nothing ever is.

If you’re a writer… 

You might notice that the pacing is great. I read this story all the way through in one day because I wanted to finish. But what I enjoyed most was the way the author had Grace share her thought processes. She questioned her friendships and what it means to be a friend, reflecting on her own decisions. I loved how she tried to do the right thing, even after things got out of control and everything started to go wrong.

When water reaches its freezing point, it turns to ice instantly. And just like that, I feel a decision snap into place—clear and cold and hard. I am not letting Ellie get away with this!

If you’re an educator…

You could find so many different things ways to bring this book into classroom activities! There are lots of opportunities to develop math problems from the button collections as well as to talk about data collection and scientific methodology. Grace's enthusiasm for data collection may even rub off on your students. 

I want to dump all three of the mixed boxes onto my floor and then sort the buttons by shape and size and color and design and material—and especially to count them! I could even put all the information into a graph or a table—really look at the data!

After reading this book I was excited about the idea of using buttons to create bracelets or sculptures and I bet students would enjoy this too. Watch this video to see how Augusto Esquivel, an artist from Buenos Aires, Argentina, uses buttons to make sculptures:  

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 SEVENTH WISH by Kate Messner

Today is Thanksgiving in Canada, so it seems especially appropriate to feature a novel that reminds us that some families are struggling today. This is an absorbing read, especially for children ages 11 and up with challenging family situations. 

                              

Description from the publisher:

Charlie feels like she's always coming in last. From her Mom's new job to her sister's life away at college, everything else always seems to be more important than Charlie's upcoming dance competition or science project. Unsure of how to get her family's attention, Charlie comes across the surprise of her life one day while ice-fishing . . . in the form of a floppy, scaly fish offering to grant her a wish in exchange for its freedom. Charlie can't believe her luck until she realizes that this fish has a funny way of granting wishes, despite her best intentions. But when her family faces a challenge bigger than any they've ever experienced, Charlie wonders if some things might be too important to risk on a wish.

The Seventh Wish was written by Kate Messner and published by Bloomsbury in 2016.

Why you want to read this book… 

It's great to find a story that shows how a sibling is affected when her older sister faces a difficult challenge. It’s a realistic portrayal of how a whole family struggles and has to come to terms with the crisis, while still carrying on with all the other things they have to do in their lives. (This story reminded me a bit of Jo Knowles’ novel, Still a Work in Progress, because it is also told from the perspective of a sibling of a struggling character. See my review here.)

I think this is the first novel I’ve read that includes both Irish dancing and ice fishing! For me, the magic fish reminded me how sometimes we wish for a quick solution that will make things better but in reality there are some difficulties we can only get through with time and hard, emotional work. The ending of the story was realistic and hopeful.

“But today, I’m tired of being the youngest in the family. I hate the way everybody else’s plans matter more than mine.”

If you’re a writer… 

This is a good story to study to see how to create a fully realized picture of the many elements that make up middle school life – friends, family, activities and interests, homework… It’s so interesting to see how the author manages to balance all of these elements in the same story!

“Mom doesn’t need that stomping and kicking and forget-everything loudness the way I do, especially now.”

If you’re a teacher…

Many students need to cope with difficult family situations, like addiction, so I think it’s an important novel to at least have available in the classroom. I really liked the way the story showed the family taking time to work through the situation. This story has connections to curriculum related to substance abuse and addiction.

“We can wish on clovers and shooting stars and flowers all we want. But in the end, the only real magic is what’s inside us and the people we love.”

Opening Line:

“I’ve only seen the ice flowers once.”

Other Info:

Kate Messner has written many middle grade novels including Eye of the Storm, Capture the Flag, The Exact Location of Home and the Ranger in Time series.

There’s a teacher’s guide for The Seventh Wish on Bloomsbury’s website.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday – NINE, TEN: A SEPTEMBER 11 STORY

I remember where I was on September 11, 2001 and how the shock and horror of the event rocked my life, even though I was hundreds of miles away. When I read this book, I appreciated how the author tried to show the impact of this event on everyday life even for those not immediately connected with it.

 

Description from the Publisher:

Ask anyone: September 11, 2001, was serene and lovely, a perfect day—until a plane struck the World Trade Center.

But right now it is a few days earlier, and four kids in different parts of the country are going about their lives. Sergio, who lives in Brooklyn, is struggling to come to terms with the absentee father he hates and the grandmother he loves. Will’s father is gone, too, killed in a car accident that has left the family reeling. Naheed has never before felt uncomfortable about being Muslim, but at her new school she’s getting funny looks because of the head scarf she wears. Aimee is starting a new school in a new city and missing her mom, who has to fly to New York on business.

These four don’t know one another, but their lives are about to intersect in ways they never could have imagined. Award-winning author Nora Raleigh Baskin weaves together their stories into an unforgettable novel about that seemingly perfect September day—the day our world changed forever.

Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story was written by Nora Raleigh Baskin and published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers in 2016.

My thoughts as a reader and teacher:

At first, I didn’t know what to expect from this story. The separateness of the main characters’ stories surprised me, but once I settled into the rhythm of the book, I was interested in each one of them and what might happen. I really loved how these characters were so different, yet each one was affected by the events in their own way.

I liked the way this story didn’t focus on the raw and gritty details of 9/11, but instead focused on the impact to these very different character’s lives. Because of the many different issues and challenges for these characters (e.g., bullying, loss, making friends, individual differences), this would make a good book for a discussion group or read aloud.

My thoughts as a writer: 

I was really interested in the way this book was structured from four different perspectives, and I especially liked the small connections between the four main characters at the beginning of the story—and then the way it circled around, connecting them again. It’s a good mentor text for anyone writing a story told from several different points of view.

Opening Line: 

“Everyone will mention the same thing, and if they don’t, when you ask them, they will remember. It was a perfect day.”

Quotes:

“It’s not about what makes you feel better or worse. If it’s the right thing to do and you know it, you should do it.”

“It seemed like a silly speck of sand in a sandbox that was getting bigger and bigger with every frightful story that flew from parent to kid, from brother to sister, from friend to friend, from one kid to another.”

Other interesting info:

Nora Raleigh Baskin is the author of several middle grade novels, including Ruby on the Outside, The Truth About My Bat Mitzvah, Anything But Typical, and The Summer Before Boys.

This book has a curriculum guide with activities and discussion questions.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday – HOW TO SPEAK DOLPHIN

I enjoyed reading this book – it gave me a lot to think about!

Description from Scholastic:

 

Lily loves her half-brother, Adam, but she has always struggled with him, too. He's definitely on the autism spectrum — though her step-father, Don, can barely bring himself to admit it — and caring for him has forced Lily to become as much mother as sister. All Lily wants is for her step-father to acknowledge that Adam has a real issue, that they need to find some kind of program that can help him. Then maybe she can have a life of her own.

Adam's always loved dolphins, so when Don, an oncologist, hears about a young dolphin with cancer, he offers to help. He brings Lily and Adam along, and Adam and the dolphin, Nori, bond instantly.

But though Lily sees how much Adam loves Nori, she also sees that the dolphin shouldn't spend the rest of her life in captivity, away from her family. Can Adam find real help somewhere else? And can Lily help Nori regain her freedom without betraying her family?

How to Speak Dolphin was written by Ginny Rorby and published by Scholastic in 2015.

My Take:

What I liked most about this book is that the characters were all individual, portrayed with flaws and struggles, and opinions about issues such as animal rights. Lily has an autistic brother and has made friends with Zoe, who is blind and very concerned about animal rights. There was a lot to think about while reading this book – especially about how to respect others and appreciate what’s special about them inside. It also made me think about the rights of animals and how we treat them.

The family situation in this story was portrayed in realistic way. Lily and Adam’s main caregiver was a step-father, and he was struggling with the challenges of an autistic child as well as what had happened to his family. It was so nice that the parent wasn’t portrayed as perfect or always understanding but as a person with weaknesses, feelings and opinions, even if I didn’t always agree with them.

For writers, this is a good book to study if you are writing a story with many different threads and lots of emotional weight. There are some sections from the dolphin’s perspective, too.

Opening Line:

“Born in a gush of blood, the dolphin calf’s initial sense of the world is tail first into water colder than her mother’s body.”

Quotes:

“Ain’t you blind?  “I am, but that means I only see what’s important about a person, not their physical self.”

“There can’t be too much love, but it has to be the letting-go kind.”

Other Info:

After reading this book, I’d like to find some of Ginny Rorby’s other novels, which include HURT GO HAPPY (about a deaf girl and a chimpanzee that is learning to sign), LOST IN THE RIVER OF GRASS (a young adult survival story in the Everglades) and THE OUTSIDE OF A HORSE (about a girl working with rescue horses whose father has PTSD after returning from the war in Iraq).

Ginny Rorby lives in northern California. Here’s what she says about her writing on her website: “I write about our relationship with animals, and the natural world, to compensate for being human. I write for young people because each generation hands off to the next the responsibility for preserving what is left over from our destructive nature.”

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday - Money Hungry

Today’s Pick: Money Hungry by Shannon Flake

Published by Jump at the Sun, Hyperion Books, 2001

From Scholastic:

Thirteen-year-old Raspberry Hill is starved for money. She will do just about anything legal to get her hands on the almighty dollar. Memories of being homeless, sleeping in the streets, and eating from handouts keep Raspberry's eye on the only prize that matters to her: cold, hard cash.

But even money can't answer the questions that keep Raspberry awake at night. Will she and Momma ever move out of the projects? What did Ja'nae do with the two hundred bucks Raspberry loaned her? And what's really going on with Momma and that rich doctor?

This unforgettable novel will keep you glued to each and every page. Bank on it.

My Take:

This story takes you into a different place and opens your eyes to another life. It wasn’t a fast-paced story, but I had enough questions in my mind that I wanted to see how it ended. Raspberry is a strong character and I enjoyed her determined attitude and wish to make things better for herself and her mom, as well as her loyalty to her friends. I read this one as an e-book from my local library.

As a writer, I’d study this more to see how to create an interesting opening – it puts a question in the reader’s mind right away. I’d also pay attention to the way the author used small details that Raspberry would notice to help develop her character.

 
Opening Line:

“Some people think I would do anything for money.”

Favourite quotes:

“I try not to do what I always do when dollars grease my palm—smell the money like its chocolate chip cookies straight out the oven.”

“But as long as I got two hands, I ain’t never living in the street no more. Ain’t never gonne be broke, neither.”

“I got too much on my mind to be a thirteen-year-old. That’s what I’m thinking on the bus ride home.”

Other Info:

Sharon Flake went to college to become a pediatrician, but ended up majoring in writing instead.

I love the inspiring message for readers she posted on her website. Here’s a bit of it, but I encourage you to check out the whole thing:

“As you read my novels, believe that you can do and accomplish more than you know. After all, you have so many gifts, so many talents, so many opportunities to accomplish what you will. You’re human, so you’ll make mistakes along the way. We all do. But don’t you dare give up on you.”

 
Other Books by this Author:

The Broken Bike Boy and the Queen of 33rd Street (2007)

Bang! (2005)

Who Am I Without Him? Short Stories About Boys and the Girls in Their Lives (2004)

Begging for Change (2003)

The Skin I'm In (1998)

For more info, visit Sharon Flake’s website.

You can find more Marvelous Middle Grade Monday books by checking out Shannon Messenger’s blog! Shannon is the founder of Marvelous Middle Grade Monday and the author of the middle grade novel, Keeper of the Lost Cities.