From You to Me

Gr 5–8—In the three years since her older sister Clara drowned in the town lake, everyone in Amelia's life seems to have coped and moved forward. Despite caring parents and a patient BFF Taylor, Amelia still feels isolated and adrift. A school mix-up provides her with a catalyst for change when Amelia is mistakenly given Clara's eighth grade to-do list instead of the one Amelia wrote for herself. Amelia's mission to overcome her own sadness by completing her sister's list provides the novel's structure; what Amelia learns about herself, her family, and her community provide the novel's heart. The list leads Amelia to reach out to Twitch, a boy who knew Clara well and whose easygoing demeanor masks heartaches of his own. Taylor and Twitch are compelling supporting characters: Taylor is an ideal friend without being idealized. But it's Twitch readers will remember for his modest courage, sharing with Amelia his perspective on coping with adversity: "We are all whiteboards that can be covered in terrible words, erased and re-covered in better words." In an economical use of language, Holt paints an authentic portrait of what it's like to live in a small town.