The Free State of Jax

Gr 3-7–Young adult author Nielsen steps away from historical fiction to write an amusing tale of a boy who attempts to steer his life in a different direction. Jax’s grandmother can no longer care for him, and he is forced to move in with Uncle Clive Grimmitz, Aunt Helga, and their six delinquent children. His aunt and uncle force him to do the dirty work around the house while his cousins create mischief in the Kansas town of Walkonby. To escape this tyrannical reign, Jax takes a raft over to the pond nearby and declares it The Free State of Jax. While Jax battles the Grimmitz family (whose only motive for adopting him is to get his grandmother’s inheritance), the children and a few adults in town join Jax to help him expand his pond into a swimming hole they can all enjoy. Jax, who is white, is an intelligent, compassionate kid whose goal is to help others as much as it is to help himself, while the Grimmitz children are entertainingly terrible, reminiscent of the Herdman children from Barbara Robinson’s 1972 The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. Readers will be rooting for Jax to succeed at standing up for himself and carving out his own space.