Theresa recommends:

Walk Two Moons (1995) by Sharon Creech
Newbery Winner

In Walk Two Moons, 13 year-old Salamanca “Sal” Hiddle learns the importance and value of family and friendship while learning to accept and grieve for the loss of her mother. She ventures on a cross-country trip from Ohio to Idaho with her grandparents and relates the story of her friend, Phoebe, who is struggling with some personal problems and fears. While telling an often humorous and sometimes painful story about Phoebe, we find that Sal is discovering more about herself and how although the loss of her mother is causing her tremendous pain, that she is starting to move past the grief to feeling good about life. Filled with humorous events and serious situations, Native American undertones, and the importance of friends and family (especially while grieving), Walk Two Moons is a moving story of one girl’s journey to feel at peace with the loss of her mother.

I highly recommend Walk Two Moons for 5-7th grade students. It is a fairly quick and easy read, but the story-telling, done by 13 year-old Sal, conveys a lot of emotion and depth about situations that a typical adolescent student may face. This is a great book for allowing students to step into the shoes of someone else to explore and feel what other people have gone through. The book discusses family and friendships and how these relationships mean different things to different people; the characters are interesting and well-developed. There are some situations that discuss Native Americans which could lead into some great discussions on Native Americans or other Native American literature. Sharon Creech allows you to get in the mind of Sal and experience what it is to be 13 and feel out-of-place and lost and uncertain of where to turn. Walk Two Moons does an excellent job of presenting grief, family, and friendship in a manner that every student will understand and find they can relate to. This is a great book for every student to develop a better understanding of how they and others deal with difficult situations in life. ~ Theresa

Thank you, Theresa for sharing this book!
Sophie