Status
Available
Publication
HarperCollins (2019), 272 pages
Library's review
"Suquamish/Duwamish girl uncovers her tragic family history in this contemporary tale of adoption.
Edie’s idyllic life in a Seattle neighborhood is upended when she realizes her parents have been telling lies. Biracial 12-year-old Edie has always known her mother was Native American but adopted
Debut author Day (Upper Skagit) handles family separation in Native America with insight and grace." A Kirkus Starred Review, www.kirkusreviews.com
Edie’s idyllic life in a Seattle neighborhood is upended when she realizes her parents have been telling lies. Biracial 12-year-old Edie has always known her mother was Native American but adopted
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into a white family. Due to this, her mother has claimed to be ignorant about her birth family and tribe. (Edie’s father is white.) While the ambiguities of Edie’s family history make her uncomfortable, she accepts the story until the day she searches the attic while working on a film project with her two best friends. They discover a box there with photos of a woman who looks exactly like Edie. Opening letters in the box, the friends realize the woman shares Edie’s name. Even as preteen tensions begin to pull her friend group apart, young Edie struggles as she seeks to discover the truth about her past without asking her parents directly. Preteen anxiety gives way to daunting maturity as she learns about the misrepresentation of Native Americans in film, the activism of the American Indian Movement, and the reason her parents decided to keep her family connections a secret for so long. The novel is enlightening and a must-read for anyone interested in issues surrounding identity and adoption.Debut author Day (Upper Skagit) handles family separation in Native America with insight and grace." A Kirkus Starred Review, www.kirkusreviews.com
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Awards
Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award (Nominee — 2022)
Sasquatch Book Award (Nominee — 2022)
Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice Award (Nominee — Intermediate — 2022)
Vermont Golden Dome Book Award (Nominee — 2021)
Oregon Reader's Choice Award (Nominee — 2022)
Lectio Book Award (Nominee — 2022)
Rhode Island Middle School Book Award (Nominee — 2021)
Charlotte Huck Award (Honor — 2020)
American Indian Youth Literature Award (Honor Book — Middle School — 2020)
NPR: Books We Love (2019)
CCBC Choices (2020)
Notable Children's Book (Older Readers — 2020)
Nerdy Book Award (Middle Grade Fiction — 2019)
Rise: A Feminist Book Project for Ages 0-18 (Selection — 2021)
El día de los niños / El día de los libros (6-8 — 2020)
Evanston Public Library 101 Great Books for Kids (Fiction — 2019)
Project LIT Book Selection (Middle Grade — 2021)
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best: Kids (Fiction for Older Readers — 2019)
Language
Original language
English
ISBN
0062872001 / 9780062872005