Wrecker by Carl Hiaasen

Thank you to Knopf Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Valdez Jones VIII, age 15, adopted the nickname Wrecker after his 5x-great grandfather who was a shipwreck salvager. He lives in Key West with his adult step-sister (mom and stepdad didn’t really want him in their home). One day when Wrecker is out on his boat fishing, he comes across a fancy speedboat that has run aground. The occupants of the speeder want Wrecker to tow them but his boat is too small and they won’t let him call the Coast Guard. In fact, the leader gives him a wad of cash to forget he ever saw them. Except Wrecker keeps seeing them throughout the town, including the historic cemetery where Wrecker is being paid to keep an old man’s sister’s headstone clean of iguana guano. As Wrecker is sucked into more dealings with these mystery men, he is finding it difficult to back out. The leader, whom Wrecker refers to as Silver Moustache, knows way too much about Wrecker and his blended family and after some veiled threats, Wrecker has to figure a way to extricate himself from illegal schemes.

This latest novel was clearly Hiaasen’s covid project but keeps all the intrigue and excitement of his other middle grade novels. Wrecker is a bit older than his other protagonists, making this appropriate for upper middle grade (5^th) or YA. A definite read for fans or Carl Hiaasen but would also recommend for those who like a fast-paced mystery.

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This title will be available September 26, 2023.

Something Like Home by Andrea Beatriz Arango

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Laura, age 12, is brought by social services to live with an aunt she’s never met after her parents overdose and enter rehab. In this novel in verse, Titi Silvia, a doctor who likes things to be in perfect order, has no idea what a teenager wants or needs. Titi speaks Spanish to Laura who doesn’t understand because her mother rejected that part of her family. Laura starts school but refuses to make friends because she doesn’t plan on staying – she thinks she will be going back to her parents soon (the 12-year-old mind at work). She spends time in the library where the librarian, recognizing that Laura is struggling with reading gives her graphic novels. Laura also eventually gives in and becomes friendly with Benson, who has trouble making and keeping friends as he is often in the hospital because he has sickle cell. One day, Laura finds an abandoned puppy that she names Sparrow – Titi reluctantly lets her keep him. Laura found the rehab facility where her parents are online and while she is not allowed to visit, therapy dogs are allowed. So Laura decides to train Sparrow to be a therapy dog that can go to rehab facilities so she can see her parents. Things don’t go as planned and when her parents check themselves out of rehab prematurely, Laura is frightened and comes to realize that her aunt is really watching out for her.

There are some heavy elements in this book – drug use, foster care, abandonment – but it is written well and accessible to the target audience of grade 5 and up. Fans of Raising Lumie by Joan Bauer will also enjoy this title. Definitely recommend.

#SomethingLikeHome #NetGalley