Root Beer Candy and Other Miracles
Author: Shari Green
Publisher: Pajama Press (October 12, 2016)
Digital review copy courtesy of NetGalley
I'm very excited to offer a wonderful, poignant book in verse for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday.
Bailey and her younger brother, Kevin, are staying with their Nana Marie in the small town of Felicity Bay for a month, but it is not quite a vacation. Their parents are struggling, and have gone away on a retreat called Marriage Repair. Bailey and Kevin barely know Nana Marie, but as they have nowhere else to go, they get to spend a month near the ocean with her. Bailey believes in miracles, and hopes for one to make her parents happy again.
Meanwhile, Felicity Bay feels like a miracle of its own. Bailey makes a new friend, Daniel, and loves exploring and playing in the sea. But when Daniel keeps coughing, and she finds out he has cystic fibrosis, she starts to lose faith.
Then a mermaid appears (well, a driftwood mermaid), and a retired pastor with an ice cream cart starts shouting prophecies. Bailey thinks that just maybe a miracle is possible after all, if only everything doesn't fall apart first.
The story is lovely, and winds up in a beautiful way with Bailey discovering that sometimes you have to make your own miracles, and that sometimes even miracles aren't enough. But through the sadness and joy, Bailey remains optimistic, and discovers that families always love each other, even when it is hard to get along.
I strongly recommend this to all who love the sea, and families, and miracles. And even root beer candy.
Five stars out of five!
To find other posts for MMGM, visit Shannon Messenger's blog where she toils to keep up with them.
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P.S. After I read this, I was pleased to see that this is a Pitch Wars success story. How terrific to see the writing community pull together to support emerging writers.
Finally, a snippet of verse from the book showing how wonderfully Shari Green captures this age.
