Planet Jupiter

February 27, 2017
Fifth-grader Jupiter identifies with her “rolling stone” father, who left three years earlier and sends occasional postcards, and with the planet for which she was named; she longs for a wide orbit in which to travel and have adventures. In a playful yet introspective narrative, Jupiter shares her frustration at being stuck on an Oregon farm when she’d rather be living an itinerant life, busking for tourists with her cellist mother and her older brother, Orion. The unexpected arrival of seven-year-old Edom, the adopted Ethiopian daughter of Jupiter’s ailing aunt Amy, spurs Jupiter’s mother to move everyone from Rainbow Farm to a vacant house in Portland; there, Jupiter and Edom secretly plot to get Edom back to her mother in California. Through themes of gardening and foraging, Kurtz (Anna Was Here) subtly conveys the girls’ underlying fears of abandonment, as well as the idiosyncratic but determined efforts of Jupiter’s mother and her friend Topher to provide a “forever family” for the children. A host of quirky and appealing supporting characters rounds out this engaging, empathic story. Ages 8–12. Agent: Barry Goldblatt, Barry Goldblatt Literary.

March 15, 2017
After months on an Oregon farm, Jupiter, an 11-year-old white girl, can't wait to resume her musician family's nomadic journey--until she learns that Edom, 7, an adopted cousin from Ethiopia, will be taking her brother's place and their destination is not the open road but a house in Portland. Jupiter's father left the family three years ago, but the mythology he fostered lives on: pursuit of adventure and the unknown trump the quotidian grind of school and work. They've lived by busking (Mom's a cellist), gleaning, and trading skills for food and shelter. When these haven't sufficed, Mom's loyal friend Topher's been there to bail them out. This time, Jupiter believes, he's bailed on them. She's stuck in Portland with Mom and Edom, while Aunt Amy undergoes cancer treatment in San Francisco. Edom's got her own issues: she never seems to sleep and, Jupiter feels, could learn a thing or two about sharing. United in their determination to leave Portland, the two hatch plans to earn money for bus tickets even as, despite themselves, they put down tentative roots, in more ways than one, in a lively, diverse neighborhood whose financially challenged yet generous denizens depend on tolerance and creativity. Occasionally, urban-foraging details and sustainable-living advocacy verge on the didactic, but the vivid characters and fascinating urban village they inhabit more than compensate, holding readers' interest throughout. A solid middle-grade family story. (Fiction. 10-13)

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June 1, 2017

Gr 4-6-Jupiter has lived on the road her whole life, busking with her family as they drive in their van from town to town. But then a number of events knock Jupiter out of her orbit: the van breaks down; Jupiter's mom decides to settle the family in Portland, OR; and a newfound adopted cousin comes to live with them. It's all too much for Jupiter to bear, but luckily, her new cousin Edom isn't too keen to live with them, either. Together, the girls hatch a scheme to get what they both want: home. For Edom, home is in California with her adoptive mother, who has cancer; for Jupiter, home is on the road. Naturally, the girls have a thing or two to learn about the definition of home (spoiler alert: it just might be where they are). There's also a cast of quirky secondary characters. The story does get bogged down with all its cuteness: Dad's cryptically clever postcards, Jupiter's jingles and her repeated metaphors about being named after a planet, Mom's budding romance with a family friend, just to name a few. But while the story can cross the line to Twee-ville, it manages to never loses its charm. The characters' growth is gradual, gentle, and believable. VERDICT Readers who reach the end of the journey will likely want to follow this unconventional but supportive family and community on further adventures. A solid purchase for larger collections.-Laura Lutz, Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2017
Grades 5-7 Fifth-grader Jupiter and her family are free spirits, living life on the road and busking to put food in their mouths. But now her father has moved on like the rolling stone he's always claimed to be, her older brother has elected to temporarily settle down, and seven-year old Edom, an adopted cousin from Ethiopia, has joined them in Portland, Oregon, while Edom's mother undergoes chemo. Things are changing, and Jupiter is not thrilled, especially with the idea that her mother might be more interested in a family friend than reuniting with her dad. Readers may be surprised by Jupiter's lifestyle (her upbringing makes free-range parenting look like bondage) and slightly bored by the book's extended looka subplot, reallyat identifying edible plants and distinguishing them from weeds. Nor does Edom seem particularly Ethiopian. But there is tension as the girls formulate a plan to escape Portland that keeps the pages turning, and Jupiter has a fresh voice that extols being unburdened, even as the story shows her that sometimes adding is better than subtracting.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)