Lemons

March 15, 2017
-My mom always says I can take any lemons that life gives me and make lemonade,- proclaims 10-year-old Lemonade Liberty Witt---Lem- for short.But when the red-haired, freckled white girl unexpectedly moves from San Francisco to tiny, wooded Willow Creek, California, after her mother's death, she encounters a range of surprises--from a grandfather that she never knew before to a local legendary Bigfoot mystery. Soon she teams up with 10-year-old Tobin Sky, Bigfoot detective, a white boy whose father is missing in action in Vietnam. Together they are swept up into investigating Bigfoot sightings and reveling in the simple joys of life. Eventually Lem needs to make serious choices about her future, while Tobin must face unusual trials of his own. Lemonade narrates her experience, and debut author Savage skillfully places key trusted adults in the story to impart wisdom about grief, relationship challenges, and primate anatomy. While a couple of plot points strain credulity and the messaging gets a little heavy-handed toward the end, engaging characters and sensitive use of repetition make this an enjoyable and comforting middle-grade handbook on navigating new experiences and the heartache of losing loved ones early in life. A joyous celebration of cryptozoology, friendship, family love, and coping with loss. (Historical fiction. 8-12)

COPYRIGHT(2017) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

March 1, 2017

Gr 3-6-Lemonade Liberty Witt has just lost her mother and has been uprooted from her home in 1970s San Francisco to live with her estranged grandfather in Willow Creek, CA. Lem's grandfather is a Bigfoot enthusiast, though not quite as enthusiastic as Tobin Sky, the boy next door, who quickly embraces Lem as a confidant. Lem must learn to cope with her own pain while understanding others', all while helping Tobin run the local Bigfoot Detective Inc. (and leads on the cryptid have been pouring in!). Debut author Savage is a child and family therapist, and her insights into child grief are clear in the narrative. This works mostly in the book's favor, though at times the discussion veers toward the clinical. Lemon's emotions are front and center, complemented by those of her grandfather. Later on, it's discovered that Tobin is dealing with the loss of his father, who was reported MIA in Vietnam. This extra layer is a little much for the story to handle at times, but it does lead to a sweet and hopeful ending. The closing scenes are a bit puzzling, taking the novel from historical to fantastic; in an otherwise realistic title, this final plot piece seems out of place. The book is well paced, with plenty of humor to balance the heavy themes. Lem is a likable character, and while her relationship with one of her former teachers is implausibly Matilda-esque, her feelings and reactions are relatable. Though she doesn't get her mother back, she does learn how to rebuild her life in a way that is full of love and happiness. VERDICT An enjoyable and welcome exploration of sorrow, healing, and friendship. Recommended as a general purchase for medium to large libraries, and a good option for collection-specific needs.-Taylor Worley, Springfield Public Library, OR

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2017
Grades 5-8 Ten-year-old Lemonade Witt makes more than one life-changing discovery after her single mother's death leaves her in the care of her estranged grandfather in Willow Creek, a town renowned as the Bigfoot capital of the world. There she falls in with Tobin, a young neighbor who is even more emotionally needy than shehis father, a Vietnam vet with combat stress reaction, has gone missing. Tobin's obsessive focus on hunting for Bigfoot signshe shows touches of Asperger'sprompts expeditions into the woods, and this and other incidents ultimately give Lem a handle for her grief and a chance to adjust. And, as it turns out, some of the woods' hidden residents are decidedly uncommon. Almost everyone in the cast suffers from some loss, and, to many readers, the protagonist's name, which refers to that famous adage, could be interpreted as a hint that she was unwanted (a notion that, unrealistically, never occurs to Lem herself), but Savage injects enough humor, mystery, and lively interaction among the characters to give this two-hanky debut a buoyant tone.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)