The Puttermans are in the House

Feldman, Jacquetta Nammar. The Puttermans Are in the House
January 17th 2023 by HarperCollins

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

**Some spoilers in weaknesses.**

Sammy and Matty live in Houston, Texas, and their whole family is very much immersed in baseball. Sammy is making her way on her team and rooting for the Astros, but in the middle of one game, Matty inexplicably quits and stops communicating with his twin, which is hard on Sammy. There are other things to worry about though; Hurrican Harvey devastates the area, and the Putterman's house is badly damaged. Their grandparents' house is also hard hit, and they all move in with Sammy's Uncle Mike and his family, including her cousin Becky. Becky has always had a difficult relationship with the twins, since she thinks the family thinks that they are special, and that her interests, which including dressing up her cat so she can post pictures on social media. Since she is preparing for her Bat Mitzvah, and things are thrown into confusion because of the storm, she's even angrier. We find out why Matty has distanced himself from Sammy, and see the various family members struggle as they find a way to rebuild everyone's lives after the external and internal storms. 

Strengths: The details about being involved in a catastropic storm are very good; I especially liked that the parents had the children dress in swimsuits and then other clothes. That wouldn't have occurred to me but would be useful. The inclusion of an elderly neighbor in both their escape to the local school and also living with Becky's family was interesting and showed the value of extended community. The family's interest in baseball was something that held them together, and the fact that Becky didn't share this made it difficult for her to feel a part of the family. Since the grandparents live nearby, I'm sure that there was some competition among the grandchildren. Matty's reasons for not talking to his sister are explained, but I'm not sure how much should be revealed. 
Weaknesses: Becky is a challenging character, and it was difficult to see her treat her cousins badly when they had suffered so much. It also didn't help (highlight to reveal spoiler): when Matty told her he had kissed his friend Ethan, and that's why he was quitting baseball, because there were no gay major league players. Every single person in Matty's family was supportive, so him keeping this secret from them and suffering so much over the incident seemed a bit odd. This was more like Penny's Green Eyes and Ham than Stamper's Small Town Pride. 
What I really think: I have a lot of hurricane books already, and they don't circulate particularly well. Baseball is the least popular sport among my students, so I may pass on purchase at this time. It doesn't help that I'm almost out of money for this school year and will have a lot less money next year because a new middle school is opening and I'll have fewer students. Take a look at this one if you want family drama, Jewish culture, some LGBTQIA+ issues, baseball, or storm books.