CONFESSIONS OF A MANGO — Review & Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple.”
~ Jack Kerouac ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

I wrote on here recently I didn’t see many posts about book endings, so, of course, there was one this week from K. M Weiland HERE called The Psychology of Story Endings (+5 Tips to Write a Truly Satisfying Ending). Enjoy!

Point of view is hard for a lot of writers, and, consequently, we see a lot of head-hopping going on. HERE Anne R. Allen has a great post called Writers, Does your WIP have a Genuinely Omniscient Point of View, or are you Head-Hopping?

Every now and then, I take up some form of art other than writing. Why I think, at my age, I will suddenly become accomplished at painting or needlework or collage is beyond me, but I keep taking up such hobbies. HERE is a good post from Kasey LeBlanc on Writer Unboxed entitled What Other Art Forms Taught Me About Writing. I’m not alone in this.

I won’t be here next week. I will be in San Diego putting the cherry on top of all my baseball travels. I will attend a game at Petco Park — the last park I need to visit to complete my goal of seeing a game in every major league park. When I announced my intention to my family a few years ago, I wasn’t sure I would be able to accomplish it, but it’s looking good for me now. Both my daughters and my granddaughter will be joining me to celebrate. We’re having a girls’ day. My beloved Giants will be visiting the San Diego Padres, and there is always a chance, albeit a long shot of a chance, but a chance nonetheless, that my Giants will pull out a win. Hope springs eternal.

I have a little dog named Mango, so when I saw a book on the San Francisco Book Review list called CONFESSIONS OF A MANGO by Kate Lumsden and Nate Pieplow, it caught my eye. I checked a synopsis online, and it really sounded good, so I ordered it. I think this is really an important book that will not only be of interest to young readers, but will help a lot of them as well. Here is the review I wrote for SFBR.

Ruby and her twin brother, Bryce, are starting sixth grade at Benton Academy, a school for gifted children. Bryce is a real brainiac, but Ruby has been diagnosed with dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia, and she feels completely out of place. She knows being at Benton is important to Bryce, and she wants it for him. The pressure on Ruby is terrible, and she doesn’t feel supported. When her new friend, Thea, tells her about an anonymous website, Ruby chooses a secret identity and posts about her frustrations at Benton. Little does she know what a hornet’s nest she has disturbed. Many other students post about their frustrations, but Bryce is furious, and so are many parents.

Authors Kate Lumsden and Nate Pieplow have written a very compelling story of a young girl who processes learning differently from most children, but they also weave in a good portrayal of the day-to-day pressures of school for almost everyone. The characters are all believable, the dialogue is pitch-perfect for the ages of the characters, and the problems faced by the characters are things readers will easily relate to. This book deserves readership far beyond its intended middle-grade audience.

I have a gently-read hardback to give to one of you. All you need to do is be a follower (it’s free and easy — see the top, right corner of the post) with a US Address, and leave a comment. If you share the link to this post on social media, please let me know in your comment, and you will get an extra chance. And please don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.