• Booklist Reviews : Booklist Reviews 2020 August #1
  *Starred Review* The past year or so has seen an influx of middle-grade novels exploring child sexual abuse and consent. This story, no PSA, is an honest slice of a difficult life—unvarnished, painful, and raw—told by 10-year-old Della, who has "browner skin" than her fair sister, a mouth like a sailor, and "doesn't take snow from anybody." See how that snow works? She tells the story of how she and her 16-year-old sister, Suki, ended up in foster care. It's told in fits and starts as Della warms up to talking about the worst things that happened to them, offering the "easy" stuff first: their mother's incarceration for cooking meth, bouncing around to new schools, being bullied, and being poor. Della's a powerhouse of a protagonist who demonstrates that being strong doesn't preclude being scared or vulnerable or angry. Bradley gradually introduces safety and hope into their world without denying the work involved in achieving and hanging onto both. The trauma of sexual abuse is omnipresent, even before it's named, though the details of what happened are left largely unsaid. The sisters' fierce love for each other helps them survive, as does the additional help they eventually find. Bradley ends with advice and resources for any kid struggling with abuse or thoughts of suicide. Prepare to read furiously.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020 Grades 5-8. Copyright 2020 Booklist Reviews.

Kimberly Brubaker Bradley is a Newbery Honor winner and a #1 New York Times bestselling author. She earned her degree from Smith College in 1989. She is popular for her fiction and nonfiction. Visit her at kimberlybrubakerbradley.com.