Friday, March 24, 2023

The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry by Chad Morris and Shelly Brown - ADVISABLE

The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry by Chad Morris and Shelly Brown
, 246 pages. Shadow Mountain, AUGUST 2023. $19 

Content: G 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

11yo Juniper Berry loves her life in the woods – her parents moved to nature-based life when they were young and now have three lids. But when Juniper’s little brother gets really sick, they need to stay close to the hospital. Not only do they find out their mother has a brother, but they also have two cousins! The family has to be in town long enough that their dad decides to enroll them in school – a place probably as deadly as the woods if you act like prey instead of predator. 

I really like Juniper’s comparison of humans to chickens – peck at the one who is different or injured – at least when it comes to the mean kids at school. Some kids, the kind ones, will see themselves here and continue to be kind. The kids who really need this message won’t ever see themselves, at least not without a lot of coaching and introspection. I Juniper’s journey – the highs and the lows. If you want an updated Stargirl, share this with your teachers. 

Cindy Mitchell, Library Teacher, MLS 

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