Cliques, Hicks, and Ugly Sticks by K.D. McCrite
11 year old April Grace Reilly lives in a small town in the 1980's with her teenage sister & her parents and just across the field from her Grandmother whose love life is interesting to say the least. She has all the struggles of a girl entering middle school including a friend who is no longer friendly and a boy that won't leave her alone, but that is nothing compared to the drama at home. The St. James's have moved into her house until they can fix up their own. If Isabel St. James isn't enough to deal with now April's mother is hiding something from her.
I stalked Booksneeze.com for a free copy of this book because I love young adult books and anything with Ugly Sticks in the title is right up my alley. The reflections of this preteen had me chuckling over and over. All kids this age are overly sensitive and dramatic, but April Grace approached everything with a strong sense of self and an amazing heart for others. I would highly recommend this book, though since all of my experience is with kids 9 yrs old and younger I am unsure whether 11 is old enough for some of the content. I advise parents to preview it and decide for themselves.
Have you ever read "The Ishbane Conspiracy" by Randy Alcorn? It is sort of similar to C.S. Lewis book "The Screwtape Letters" except the former centers around teenagers and some of the hardships and temptations they deal with in todays cultural climate. If you haven't read it, I would highly recommend it. It's one of my all time favorites. :-)
ReplyDeleteI will def. have to find that one. Thanks!
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