Book Review: Drita, My Homegirl

Author: Jenny Lombard
Interest Level: Grades 3 and up

Description from the Book Website: Drita and her family come to New York as refugees from war-torn Kosovo. Even though she barely speaks English, Drita can’t wait to start school and make a new best friend. But her new classmates don’t make it easy, teasing her about virtually everything. The worst is Maxie, a tough African-American girl whose sassy attitude hides a painful secret.

 When Maxie takes things too far, their teacher assigns Maxie a paper on Drita and her journey to America from Kosovo. Suddenly, Maxie realizes she and Drita have more in common than she thought. And when Drita’s mother gets sick, there’s only one person who can help—Drita’s new homegirl.

A sensitively written story of two worlds coming together, Drita, My Homegirl touchingly explores the effects of war on a family and how friendship sometimes appears in the unlikeliest places.

Why It's On My Bookshelf: I always have a lot of optimism as the school year begins that students will continue to blossom in their math, reading, and writing skills....but more importantly I have a hope in my heart they will also grow as a community. If you want to create, build, and bind positive student relationships then start with an inspiring story like Drita, My Homegirl by Jenny Lombard. It will inspire kids to be appreciative, compassionate, sensitive, and take care of one another. Starting in third grade I sometimes notice a negative shift in friendships. This sometimes stems from the differences they notice about each other. Instead of taking a genuine interest and being curious about diversity, sometimes kids can knock one another down with hurtful teasing and exclusion. Enter Drita and Maxie, two girls with not a lot of commonality...sounds like a lot of students in my school. Each chapter changes back and forth between their voices. This is key to developing empathy and understanding towards their personal stories. It reminded me of the quote, "Never judge a person until you've walked a mile in their shoes." Drita, My Homegirl embodies those words. It's also the adults who get Maxie to take a REAL look at who Drita is and what she's been going through. This allows Maxie to show her own vulnerabilities and it sparks her caring side to come forward. I'm excited to have this in our school library this year. But it can also be used as a wonderful read aloud that will surely increase empathy, friendship, and community building.


A Link to This Book and Others You Might Find Helpful:

Book Review: Middle School Confidential Series

Author: Annie Fox

Illustrator: Matt Kindt

Interest Level: Grades 5 and Up

About The Series:

Meet Jack, Jen, Mateo, Abby, Chris, and Michelle—six kids in middle school just trying to figure it all out. The Middle School Confidential series follows these six characters as they negotiate a shifting social scene, forge strong friendships, and deal with changing family dynamics. Fun and engaging character narratives are complemented by quizzes, quotes from real kids, tips, tools, and resources. 

Be Confident In Who You Are (Book 1)

Be Confident in Who You Are brings readers into the lives of the Middle School Confidential characters as they try to meet new challenges without losing sight of who they are. Readers get practical advice for being healthy, feeling good about themselves, and staying in control of feelings and actions—even when the pressure is on. 

Real Friends vs the Other Kind (Book 2)

In Real Friends vs. the Other Kind, the characters navigate the ins and outs of friendships, cliques, crushes, and more. There’s expert information for readers on making friends, resolving disputes, and dealing with other aspects of the social scene—including gossip, exclusion, cyberbullying, peer pressure, and being there for friends who need help.

What's Up with My Family? (Book 3)

In What's Up with My Family?, the characters negotiate family rules, routines, and responsibilities. Readers will find insider tips for getting along with parents and handling common concerns that come up at home—including dealing with sibling conflicts, coping with divorce and life in a blended family, and being assertive when adults are genuinely unfair.

Why It's On My Bookshelf: Well, it's that time of year again. We are getting our 5th graders ready for a new environment - middle school. Just bringing up this topic can raise anxiety in the room. So wouldn't it be nice to have a hip, relevant, contemporary book series to help students transition from elementary to middle school? Done and done! Series found. And how do I know Middle School Confidential is doing wonders for future middle schoolers? Because kids are asking me for the fourth book (publication pending)! Since the moment I introduced the books, I've barely seen them since. A steady stream of 5th graders have been checking them out from my bookshelf. When asking kids how they like the series and how it's helping them - I was delighted by their responses. Students are taking skills they've learned from Middle School Confidential and utilizing them in their daily lives. One student recommended I share with 5th graders an activity called "Who Are Your Real Friends?" from Real Friends vs the Other Kind because it helped her evaluate her own friendships. A book that decreases friendship drama? Love it.


The students who have read the series have had a noticeably improved attitude about entering middle school. That shift in perspective is allowing kids to not dread but embrace their middle grade years. I encourage teachers, school librarians, and parents to get these on your bookshelves. They won't be sitting idle for long.


Looking forward to the fourth book!

Helpful Links:
Author Annie Fox's Blog. Good Stuff.
Leader's Guide To The Middle School Confidential Series 
Learn more about the series at Free Spirit Publishing.  

Book Review: Rules

Author: Cynthia Lord
Interest Level: Grades 4 and Up

About This Book: Twelve-year-old Catherine just wants a normal life. Which is near impossible when you have a brother with autism and a family that revolves around his disability. she's spent years trying to teach David the rules from "a peach is not a funny-looking apple" to "keep your pants on in public" - in order to head off David's embarrassing behaviors.

But the summer Catherine meets Jason, a surprising, new sort-of friend, and Kristi, the potential next-door friend she's always wished for, it's her own shocking behavior that turns everything upside down forces her to ask: What is normal?

Filled with humor and warmth, Cynthia Lord's novel takes a candid and sensitive look at feeling different and finding acceptance - beyond the rules.

Why It's On My Bookshelf: A few years ago, I was listening to a 5th grade class discuss their transition on becoming middle schoolers. They shared many fears and concerns: 'What if I forget my locker combination?' 'What will the cafeteria food be like?' 'What if I get lost?' 'Will there be more homework?' Mostly, it was the usual stuff I hear every year. But one comment has stayed with me - "I'm worried kids will make fun of my sister because she is disabled." The room went silent. And then an eruption of hands went up around me. Students responded with an empathatic discussion in support of their peer. I was grateful for two things: 1)the power of a caring community of kids and 2)how brave the student was to share his challenge. I realized he must have felt emotionally safe to do so. But I also wasn't aware of the stress he had been feeling about his sibling. These students need support and care. Enter the essential read Rules. It's full of insight, understanding, and strength.

An autism diagnosis affects the whole family. Because of the daily demands and interventions required, balancing daily life activities can sometimes be difficult. This can be very hard on siblings of autistic children. Through Catherine's eyes you feel her annoyance, frustration, jealousy, embarrassment, and worry. And you also feel her love, compassion, care, and loyalty. Those traits help her overcome the emotional obstacles she faces.  If you want to encourage understanding and care for children like Catherine, read Rules. This book has been making a difference in my school.


A Link to This Book and Others You Might Find Helpful:

Book Review: Call Me Hope

Author: Gretchen Olson

Interest Level: 5th Grade and Up

About This Book: Eleven-year-old Hope leads a seemingly normal life. She is looking forward to sixth grade, and the promise of Outdoor School, an annual camping trip that happens in the spring. She is thrilled when she lands a job at a used clothing store, and manages to attract the attention of a cute boy from her class. But Hope's self-serving mother, Darlene, who frequently flies into rages, calling Hope "stupid" and "hopeless," always manages to overshadow everything good in Hope's life. When Darlene threatens not to sign the permission slips for Outdoor School, Hope decides she can no longer keep silent about what is happening at home. By drawing strength from the example of Anne Frank, whom she is reading about in class, Hope gathers the courage to tell her mother how much the names hurt. The message of this story about the destructive power of verbal abuse is thinly veiled, but Hope is a winsome character whose bravery and determination will resonate with middle-grade readers. ~from Booklist

Why It's On My Bookshelf:  Recently, a parent volunteer was working in our school library and approached me holding a new book arrival, "Mrs. D, I think you might want to read this." I flipped it over and started reading the description:

A bully is ruining eleven-year-old Hope's life, and she doesn't know what to do. She can't even go to her mother for help, because the bully is her mother.

We do a lot of talking with students about stopping the verbal bullying of one another. But what if they are being verbally bullied by a parent? Are we talking to them about how to handle that? Are we teaching them to identify that as verbal abuse? Sometimes kids have difficulty thinking of verbal abuse as abuse, especially when it comes from a parent. I've chosen Call Me Hope as my first chapter book review because it's a critical read for kids. There are not enough books addressing the issue of verbal abuse by parents. There may be more 'Hopes' walking the hallways of our schools then we know. Maybe a life could be changed by living through the eyes of Call Me Hope.