A simple, yet heart warming story of a young girl growing up over the summer. Cat isn't really fond of her role of being guardian to Chicken her autistic younger brother. Since the death of her father she had to be the glue that keeps everything together especially with her mom always working. Cat barely has time to be a kid and sometimes that frustration shows between her interaction with Chicken. Over the course of the book we do get valuable insights of her mother's relationship to her parents and the prioritization of work over family can have detrimental long term effects. While these things are important, I do wish more time was spent with the children on the island and Cat biracial identity in regards to discrimination and hair. These two things in particular was presented in a rushed, one-dimensional way and I'm afraid younger readers might not fully get the point it is trying to established. I would have rated the book much higher, but I wasn't that interested in the Grandparents story-line. ( )

Sweet book about being the reliable one in a family -- the kid who takes care of everything when one parent is worked and the other has passed and your younger brother is slightly neurodivergent. Love how Cat's estranged grandparents manage to slip into her life slowly and take the weight off without forcing confrontations or moving too fast. It's also a good book about a magical escape of a place and friendships and sharks and fishing. ( )

Recommended Ages: Gr.

Plot Summary: Cat doesn't want her mom to know that her brother Chicken has been running away recently. Her mom is too busy working her three jobs to pay off the medical bills from when her father passed 4 years ago. Eager to have some quality time with her mom and her best friend who moved away, Cat is excited to spend the first three weeks of summer in Atlanta. Her mom is teaching an art class. Cat and Rishi's family will help care for Chicken. Except, that doesn't go as planned. As soon as they land in Atlanta, they learn Rishi and family are flying to India because Rishi's grandmother had a stroke. Cat is seriously disappointed. She's also surprised when her mom announces the new plan: drop off Cat and Chicken at their grandparents they've never met for three weeks and leave them there while Mom teaches the class in a different state. How will they get through these three weeks with the risk of Chicken running to the ocean, and staying with Macon who doesn't seem very excited to see them?

Setting: San Francisco to Gingerbread Island, NC (made up?)

Characters:
Cat - AKA Caterpillar, 11 yo
Chicken - AKA Henry, 7 yo, loves sharks
Mom - white, artist
Dad - black, died 4 years ago, loved to cook
Rishi Krishnamurthys - Cat's best friend, moved to Atlanta, still video chat
Manjula and Sandeep Krishnamurthys - Rishi's parents, helped watch Chicken after school before they moved to Atlanta
Lily - Cat's grandma
Macon - Cat's grandpa
Harriet - Cat's friend on the island
John Harvey - bully on the island

Recurring Themes: siblings, responsibilities, special needs, grandparents, disappointment, family feud, ocean town, friendship, sacrifices, fishing, race, mixed race, good and bad

Controversial Issues: none

Personal Thoughts: Extremely well written. Love that the place is almost a character, and Cat calls attention to that. I also like the discussion of John Harvey being good or bad. Very curious to know what kids think of this one.

Genre: realistic fiction

Pacing: medium, character driven
Characters: very well developed
Frame:
Storyline:

Activity: ( )

A very heartfelt story through the eyes of a girl who takes responsibility for her little brother and how she gains her independence. through a series of event Cat and Chicken help their mother and grandparents work through issues that have kept them apart for way to long. By talking about loved ones who have passed Cat and her family is able to heal hard feelings of misunderstanding from the past. ( )

When the family's summer arrangements go awry, Cat and Chicken's mother sends them to North Carolina to stay with her parents whom the kids have never met. Clearly there is some kind of estrangement between daughter and parents. Cat struggles to connect with her grandfather and tries to figure out what happened between him and Mom. ( )