Me and Sam-Sam Handle the Apocalypse

February 15, 2019
Jesse Broadview is trying to survive junior high just like everyone else--with the addition of doing it while having autism spectrum disorder--but it gets complicated when her English teacher father is arrested for stealing money from the school.Bullied at school, Jesse spends her time outside it training her Pomeranian, Sam-Sam, to be a bomb-sniffing dog just like her heroic, deployed mom's. Even though he's afraid of dogs, new kid Springer Regal is also a bit offbeat, and he and Jesse find similarities and strengths in each other. They decide they will have to investigate the theft in order to prove Jesse's dad's innocence, as the police are unlikely to take his claims seriously. Jesse and Springer narrow their list of suspects, but when a tornado rips through their small Kentucky town, further opportunities to be heroic abound. Moving back and forth in time, Vaught writes in Jesse's wry, distinct voice, allowing her to explain some of her sensitivities in a frank, matter-of-fact way: "new clothes don't have to be perfect. Just not itchy." Readers also see how even well-meaning neurotypicals can inadvertently echo the distancing gestures Jesse endures--and has to some extent internalized--from the actively cruel bullies. But over and above all this, Jesse is a vibrant, strong, smart, funny character who happens to have ASD. Jesse, her family, and Springer present white; ethnic diversity is indicated primarily through naming convention.An absorbing mystery about friendship, growth, and heroics. (author's note) (Mystery. 8-12)

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April 1, 2019

Gr 4-6-Words that describe Jesse Broadview include: dog lover, "Messy Jesse," heroine, and "on the spectrum." Her quirkiness can lead to extreme behavior from burning tank tops that are too itchy, building a secret hideout in the forest, and throwing water bottles at bullies. Jesse's life is clearly anything but typical, but when a tornado strikes her small Kentucky town and her father is accused of stealing money from the school library, Jesse faces her own apocalypse. Jesse will pave her own path as she dabbles in a first true friendship, navigates the mystery surrounding her father, and stands her ground against a fierce toronado. Vaught invites readers into Jesse's world, which is simultaneously intriguing and jumbled. The novel bounces between the missing money mystery and the action building toward the tornado, which enhances the plot's energy, but can initially cause confusion for readers. Vaught's detailed accounts of events through Jesse's perspective builds not only an understanding, but also an experience for the reader, and provides intimate insight on her neuroatypicality. VERDICT Highly recommended for school libraries as a strong addition to help diversify realistic fiction collections to include neuroatypical characters and heroines.-Mary-Brook J. Townsend, The McGillis School, Salt Lake City

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 8, 2019
In this heartfelt middle grade mystery, an autistic girl becomes an amateur detective after money is stolen from her English teacher father’s desk at school and he is blamed for the theft. With the aid of her friend, new kid Springer Regal, and her faithful Pomeranian, Sam-Sam, Jesse Broadview sets out to clear her father by finding the true culprit, along the way repeatedly encountering “Jerkface and his pet cockroaches,” a trio of bullies. While the investigation plays out over the course of the week preceding the narrative, a storyline set in the present focuses on the immediate aftermath of a tornado that hit their small Kentucky town, where Jesse and Sam-Sam prove useful in aiding their neighbors. Along the way, Jesse narrates her experience “on the spectrum,” which manifests for her as touch sensitivity (“my new clothes don’t have to be perfect. Just not itchy”), an occupation with numbers, and the occasional meltdown. Vaught (Super Max and the Mystery of Thornwood’s Revenge) brings training as a neuropsychologist to this sensitively told tale, and she offers a nuanced, normalizing portrayal of Jesse’s autism spectrum disorder alongside her other qualities. Between the charming protagonist, the engaging mystery, and a compelling emotional arc, the result is wholly satisfying. Ages 8–12. Agent: Erin Murphy, Erin Murphy Literary Agency.

Starred review from April 1, 2019
Grades 5-7 *Starred Review* In a memorable week for Jesse, a devastating tornado comes to her small Kentucky town, she's faced with the traumatic sight of her dad in handcuffs after a large amount of money disappears from his desk at school, and confrontations with a trio of relentless bullies escalate. On top of that, she gains a solid new friend, a mystery to solve (who really took that money?), proof that her Pomeranian Sam-Sam has important hidden talents, and plenty of evidence that being on the spectrum doesn't make her dumb, disabled, broken, or incapable of rising to the occasion. Led by her mom, who is deployed in Iraq but available for Skype conversations, and Springer, a big, quiet new kid who's quick on the uptake when it comes to meltdowns, good at respecting personal space, and not afraid to help with an investigation that ends up implicating school faculty and administration, Jesse gets a sensitive but not (except sometimes for her dad) overprotective support group. Her tale, told partly in flashbacks, ends in a flurry of high notes (with Sam-Sam the hero of the day). Edgar-winning Vaught, a neuropsychologist, has both personal and professional experience to draw on in crafting a narrator who is admirably smart and resilient despite an itchy brain and a compulsion to count things.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)