When You Reach Me: (Newbery Medal Winner) - Hardcover

Stead, Rebecca

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385737424 ISBN 13: 9780385737425

Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books, 2009

Synopsis

Winner of the 2010 John Newbery Medal

Four mysterious letters change Miranda’s world forever.

By sixth grade, Miranda and her best friend, Sal, know how to navigate their New York City neighborhood. They know where it’s safe to go, like the local grocery store, and they know whom to avoid, like the crazy guy on the corner.

But things start to unravel. Sal gets punched by a new kid for what seems like no reason, and he shuts Miranda out of his life. The apartment key that Miranda’s mom keeps hidden for emergencies is stolen. And then Miranda finds a mysterious note scrawled on a tiny slip of paper:

I am coming to save your friend’s life, and my own.
I must ask two favors. First, you must write me a letter.

The notes keep coming, and Miranda slowly realizes that whoever is leaving them knows all about her, including things that have not even happened yet. Each message brings her closer to believing that only she can prevent a tragic death. Until the final note makes her think she’s too late.

About this title

Review:

Winner of the Newbery Medal
A Junior Library Guild Selection
An ALA-ALSC Notable Children's Book
An ALA-YALSA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults
A best book of the year:
Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, Booklist, Indies Choice
Named to Multiple State Award Lists
Five starred reviews

"[W]hen all the sidewalk characters from Miranda's Manhattan world converge amid mind-blowing revelations and cunning details, teen readers will circle back to the beginning and say, 'Wow ... cool.'" --Kirkus Reviews, Starred review

"[T]he mental gymnastics required of readers are invigorating; and the characters, children, and adults are honest bits of humanity no matter in what place or time their souls rest." --Booklist, Starred review

"Closing revelations are startling and satisfying but quietly made, their reverberations giving plenty of impetus for the reader to go back to the beginning and catch what was missed." --The Horn Book Magazine, Starred review

"This unusual, thought-provoking mystery will appeal to several types of readers." --School Library Journal, Starred review

"It's easy to imagine readers studying Miranda's story as many times as she's read L'Engle's, and spending hours pondering the provocative questions it raises." --Publishers Weekly, Starred review

[T]he believable characters and unexpected ending invite readers to ponder the extraordinary that underlies the ordinary in this fictional world and in their own." --The Washington Post

"Absorbing." --People

"Readers ... are likely to find themselves chewing over the details of this superb and intricate tale long afterward." --The Wall Street Journal

"Incandescent." --The Washington Post

"Smart and mesmerizing." --The New York Times

Book Description:

The Time-Traveller's Wife for children. This remarkable novel holds a fantastic puzzle at its heart. It's original, brilliant and profound.

About this edition

• Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0385737424
• ISBN 13: 9780385737425
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 208