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Hest, Amy

The Summer We Found the Baby

192 pp. | Candlewick | August, 2020 | Trade ISBN 978-0-7636-6007-9 $16.99
(2) 4-6 On page one, eleven-year-old Julie steals a baby from the steps of the public library in a 1940s Long Island beach town. The questions that cluster around this action--why? whose baby is it? what will Julie do with it?--move offstage as we are introduced to the events of the immediately preceding months. Through three alternating voices--Julie, her little sister Martha, and Bruno, the boy next door--we encounter secrets and mysteries. Why has Bruno's older brother, away at war, stopped writing home? Why have Julie and Bruno fallen out? Who is the vaguely familiar rich woman who has turned up in town? Why is Bruno planning to sneak off to New York City? The mosaic pieces gradually come together to form a cohesive story of bereavement, war on the home front, friendship, kindness, and the energy of a new life. The multiple voices are distinctive, authentic, and equally inviting. Each child is a slightly unreliable reporter, a narrative technique that will keep readers on their toes as they try to sort everything out. There's a touch of gawky middle-grade romance, a poignant unanswered question, and even a cameo appearance by Eleanor Roosevelt in this sweet summer story.
Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020

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