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Monday, April 22, 2024

Middle Grade Book Review: Something Like Home

 



Lauren goes to live with her aunt after her parents are required to enter rehab. They can't stop using drugs and neglecting Lauren. Lauren called the police and feels responsible for their time in rehab.

Lauren's aunt isn't the most welcoming. She just wants to go home, but that's not an option. Moving to her aunts means moving to a new school. It's not easy being the new girl in school. How is Lauren supposed to make friends when she's going to be back with her parents before too long?

When she finds a puppy who needs recusing, Lauren comes up with a plan. If she can train Sparrow to become a therapy dog, they can visit her parents. She misses them more than she can say. 
My Thoughts: A wonderful heart wrenching story about Lauren's family life. She feels heartbroken that she's responsible for splitting up her family. I love how she became a family with Sparrow. She trained him. Even though she rescues him, they saved each other. Because of Sparrow, Lauren makes a friend. Together, they train Sparrow to become a therapy dog. I wanted to wrap Lauren up in a hug. For me, the ending, was a little too good to be true, but it did wrap everything up nicely. 

Cover Thoughts: Adorable
Source: My Library
Library Recommendation: A great novel in verse for middle graders. 

* Nothing bad happens to the dog after it's rescued. 

8 comments:

  1. I'm always pulled into a family story like this one and the cover will attract a lot of young readers. Thanks for featuring your review on today's Marvelous Middle Grade Monday (MMGM).

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  2. What an adorable cover. Sounds like a very heartwarming story. Happy MMGM to you

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  3. I'm glad you enjoyed this book, even if the ending was a little too easy. I can see how connecting with Sparrow really helped Lauren with her challenging situation. Thanks for sharing it this week.

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  4. Sounds great! I rarely preorder books, but I just picked up the paperback, scheduled to come out in July.

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  5. If kids choose books by their covers ... this one will go out to a lot of homes. It sounds like a cute story, and who can resist a rescue dog?

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  6. Far too many kids will be able to relate to Lauren's sad circumstances, so that means a lot of kids need this book. I'll try to check it out. Thanks for the review.

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  7. It's a heart-breaking situation for poor Lauren, and she really needs a friend. It's also heart-warming that she gets the support she needs from a puppy. Dogs are truly wonderful, and I've have seen how they help children in difficult circumstances. Thanks for the recommendation (and yes, great cover!)

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  8. I'm always looking for more novels in verse, so I'll have to put this one on my list. Thanks so much for sharing about it!

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