Abby, Tried and True

January 11, 2021
With heartfelt candor, Gephart (The Paris Project) explores the impact of a life-changing diagnosis on a close-knit Jewish family. When Abby Braverman’s best friend and Florida neighbor moves to Israel the summer before their seventh grade year, Abby is sure it’s the worst thing that could happen, until she learns that her own beloved older brother, Paul, 16, must undergo treatment for testicular cancer. Perpetually quiet with an interest in turtles and poetry, Abby wishes she could be as outgoing as her brother was before he got sick. If components of the exposition feel labored, Gephart’s depictions of Abby’s friendship with and attraction to new neighbor Conrad, her supportive family’s Jewish faith, and her affectionate relationship with Paul—the close siblings joke about their moms and engage in fierce Monopoly games—provide a stable backdrop for this story, which is as much about a family’s wearying experience with cancer as it is about a young girl learning to feel comfortable with herself. Ages 10–up. Agent: Tina Dubois, ICM Partners.

January 15, 2021
A quiet, poetry-writing, nature-loving tween learns to cope with changes and challenges during a difficult year. Twelve-year-old Abby Braverman does not feel brave. Her best friend, Cat, is moving away to Israel, and her older brother, Paul, is diagnosed with testicular cancer. Abby and Paul have their two moms, Mom Rachel and Mama Dee, for support, and Abby has her turtle, Fudge, to talk to, but with Cat gone, she doesn't have anyone else to turn to. She suffers from social anxiety at school and finds it difficult to make new friends; however, when a cute boy moves into Cat's old house next door, Abby finds herself making tentative steps toward a new friendship with him. The whole family pulls together to support Paul through surgery and chemotherapy, which is hard on all of them. With each new challenge Abby surmounts, she learns that being anxious and sensitive doesn't mean that she can't also be other things: a supportive sister, a good friend, and a brave person too. This quiet, steady story especially shines when destigmatizing Abby's social anxiety and Paul's particular form of cancer. The Bravermans are Jewish, and, as the school year goes on, they observe holidays like Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Hanukkah, and Passover. This representation of a close-knit modern Jewish family is authentic and warm. A touching story about finding inner strength during a challenging time. (author's note) (Fiction. 10-13)

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