April 8, 2025 by Fitzroy Books
E ARC provided by the publisher
Anny starts middle school after years of being homeschooled. The transition goes fairly smoothly; she has a best friend, Ella, and makes new acquaintances in Tracy and Larissa. There are some bumps, like figuring out what to wear and how to navigate lockers and class changes. Anny is dealing with the death of a boy who went to her church, Robert, in a house fire. She didn't know him well, but suspected he might have had a crush on her. This is an odd thought, because she thinks that she might be gay. Since her family is very religious and her mother in particular has repeatedly opined that homosexuality is a sin and a choice that people make, Anny is very uncomfortable and doesn't know quite what to do with her feelings. She only knows at this point that she has no interest in discussing crushes on boys, and her friends are starting to notice. She and Larissa enjoy hanging out, and are obsessed with the Ouija board, which Anny's mother says could lead to demon possession, as well as ESP. They run experiments in school, trying to guess what the other is thinking, and are enthralled when a mind reader speaks at their school. They sometimes think about contacting Robert. While Anny and Larissa get along fairly well, they do have some miscommunication; when Anny becomes obsessed with replicating the pillow that she makes for Family and Consumer Science, with the idea of selling some of the 15 she creates at a craft fair, Larissa unkindly dismisses them, leading Anny to think that Larissa might like to control her a little too much. The two also plan a treasure hunt for Ella's birthday, which is an interesting idea that doesn't work out too well. Anny also isn't terribly supportive when Larissa has a crush on their art teacher. Robert's death hangs over Anny's thoughts for quite some time, which ends up being a good thing when Ella's house also catches fire, and Anny is able to stop her from going back into the house to get her dog. Anny's transition to public school, and her questioning of her sexual identity, sometimes causes difficulties, but she manages to navigate her new experiences fairly well.
Strengths: It is always interesting to see books that portray the transition from homeschooling to public school, and there aren't many of them. I appreciated that Anny had a close relationship with her parents, but didn't necessarily agree with their opinions. The friendships were realistically portrayed, as were the various tween obsessions. While there aren't a lot of fatal fires, there are a few; we lost a high schooler in my community several years ago, so it was interesting to see the effect on the community portrayed, and the fire safety tips were appreciated. Anny's questions about her own sexual identity will resonate with young readers who are trying to figure out their own.
Weaknesses: While there is no specification about when this book is set, it seems to be set in the early 2000s, maybe around 2005. There are a lot of cultural references like television shows and book series that would make most sense at that time, since there are also references to Facebook, Etsy, and texting. The obsession with ESP seemed like something more suited to the 1970s. However, there are discussions of terms relating to sexual identity (pan, ace, demisexual) that I don't know were in use twenty years ago, so I was a bit confused. Perhaps I missed something.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who enjoyed Butler's Rabbit, Rabbit or Hitchcock's One True Way for the exploration of sexual identity, or Springstubb's How to Tell a True Story for discussions about the aftermath of a house fire.
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