Half Moon Summer

Starred review from April 24, 2023
Though they became instant pals as infants born on the same day in Half Moon Bay, Calif., 12-year-olds Drew and Mia haven’t seen each other since Mia moved to Sacramento. But now, 12 years later, she’s spending the summer with her Gram in Half Moon Bay while her father tends to a sick relative in Alaska. Since Drew’s best friend recently moved away, and Mia doesn’t know any other kids in town, the pair quickly fall into a routine of running each morning with Drew’s father. As the summer unfurls, the duo bond over familial conflicts: Drew has been struggling to accept his father’s amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diagnosis, while Mia worries about her family’s financial and housing-related troubles. Together, they begin preparing for the town’s half-marathon, and while it initially feels as if they’re “running away from what scares us,” they find that their training helps them make the most of every day in the face of uncertain futures. Via distinct dual perspectives that alternate between Drew’s POV, told in compassionate prose, and Mia’s, conveyed in rhythmic verse, Vickers (Like Magic) vividly captures one emotionally turbulent summer filled with a friendship’s mutual trust and support. Characters cue as white. Ages 8–12. Agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Erin Murphy Literary.

July 1, 2023
Drew and Mia met as infants -- born on the same day in the same hospital, they stopped crying only when nurses put them in the same bassinet -- but grew up in different areas of California, meeting again only when Mia comes to stay with her Gram in Drew's hometown of Half Moon Bay for the summer before they turn thirteen. Mia's family is there while her father is in Alaska caring for his ailing mother. Drew's summer plans mainly involve avoiding work in his father's carpentry shop until the gift of a pair of Nikes gives him new purpose. Mia joins Drew and his dad on their morning runs, and they decide to enter a local half marathon. When Drew learns that his dad has been diagnosed with ALS, the race takes on a deeper meaning. Vickers does an excellent job of blending her two narrators' voices, with Drew's chapters written in prose and Mia's in verse. The book deals authentically with tween feelings, especially their complex reactions to death and loss, while also maintaining a solid pace through the dynamic plot, making it a great choice for upper-middle-grade readers looking for an emotionally intense story without a hint of romance. Sarah Rettger

(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from April 1, 2023
A bond formed in infancy is reestablished during a pivotal summer when two tweens each need a staunch friend by their side. Drew and Mia have an unusual origin story: They were born on the same day and in the same hospital in Half Moon Bay, California. One baby's presence comforted the other inconsolable one in their shared bassinet. While this story is familiar to each, they don't see each other again until life brings them together 12 years later when Mia returns to Half Moon Bay from Sacramento to visit her grandmother. The two young people feel a connection that blossoms into friendship, one that sustains each of them through some of the worst of life's difficulties. For Drew, it's his father's diagnosis with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. For Mia, it's financial stress and the impending loss of her family's home. They take turns telling their individual stories: Drew's prose is direct and descriptive; Mia uses free verse to capture concise moments and feelings. They begin to go running together, and the way they start to open up is sensitively portrayed and rings true. Just as Drew and Mia fall into step during their runs as they train to enter a half-marathon, their stories begin to align as well, and they encourage and support each other through their challenges. It doesn't alter the road ahead, but it does influence how they handle what comes next. The cast is cued White. Uplifting. (Fiction. 10-13)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from May 1, 2023
Grades 4-7 *Starred Review* When Drew, a newborn baby, wouldn't stop crying, a hospital nurse tucked him in beside Mia, another newborn, and he calmed right down. Twelve years later, Drew begins his summer with low expectations, since his best friend has moved away from Half Moon Bay. When Dad takes up running, he persuades Drew to join him on daily outings, training for an upcoming half-marathon. Before that event, a girl named Mia comes to stay with her grandmother and joins their running crew. Just when the summer seems brighter, Drew learns that his father is seriously ill, and Mia discovers that her family will be losing their home. Each is devastated initially, but they continue to run while supporting each other and making discoveries about themselves and their relationships with family members and friends. The book has a small cast of well-developed, mostly likable characters, whose interactions and reflections are at the heart of the novel. The author of Like Magic (2016) and Paper Chains (2017), Vickers tells the main characters' intertwined stories through alternating first-person narratives, with Drew writing in journal-entry style and Mia expressing herself in free verse. Each adds an interesting perspective, while both move the story forward. An involving, heartening novel of change and growing awareness.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

July 1, 2023
Drew and Mia met as infants -- born on the same day in the same hospital, they stopped crying only when nurses put them in the same bassinet -- but grew up in different areas of California, meeting again only when Mia comes to stay with her Gram in Drew's hometown of Half Moon Bay for the summer before they turn thirteen. Mia's family is there while her father is in Alaska caring for his ailing mother. Drew's summer plans mainly involve avoiding work in his father's carpentry shop until the gift of a pair of Nikes gives him new purpose. Mia joins Drew and his dad on their morning runs, and they decide to enter a local half marathon. When Drew learns that his dad has been diagnosed with ALS, the race takes on a deeper meaning. Vickers does an excellent job of blending her two narrators' voices, with Drew's chapters written in prose and Mia's in verse. The book deals authentically with tween feelings, especially their complex reactions to death and loss, while also maintaining a solid pace through the dynamic plot, making it a great choice for upper-middle-grade readers looking for an emotionally intense story without a hint of romance.

(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from January 26, 2024

Gr 5-8-Mia and Drew were born on the same day in the same California hospital, but don't meet up again until the summer before eighth grade when they discover that they have even more in common. Drew is feeling in-between-old enough to babysit his toddler sister, but not old enough to work in his father's woodshop. His best friend Isaac has moved away and he's worried about some upsetting news his parents are keeping from him. Mia is also in-between. She and her family moved out of their apartment and are staying with her grandmother for the summer while her dad is in Alaska, taking care of his ailing mother. Mia wants her grandma to get better so that her dad can come home and finish work on the house that he is building for them. The pair initially bonds over music and messy younger siblings, but, over the course of the summer, they encourage and challenge each other to take the next step-literally, in training for a half-marathon and also in how to be a good friend, how to say the right thing, and how to keep going even when it's hard or lonely. Drew's first-person narration is direct with a self-aware and humorous tone. Mia tells her story in compact lines of free verse, filling the pages of a notebook that her father gave her to record everything that happens while he's away. Vickers presents issues of loss, financial instability, and serious illness with a realistic but gentle touch. VERDICT A sensitive, heartfelt story of friendship and growing up. Highly recommended.-Jennifer Costa

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