Of course I’d heard of Jacqueline Woodson, but somehow her books seemed to have slipped under my radar. There’s one pretty good explanation for this…if you are a very popular author then your books are usually checked out and it’s not very likely that I’ll find them on the shelves at the library. Just to check my theory, I put her name into my library system and there are 18 books. Yep. Just like I thought. She’s popular and never on the shelf because someone’s reading her.
After getting my hands on this ARC of PEACE, LOCOMOTION I can see why everyone must love her books. This was one of those I-can’t-put-it-down books. It’s a very short book, but the absolute perfect length to tell the story that needs to be told. It’s one of those books that causes tears to leak down your face as you’re reading, but just when you really think you’re going to let loose with a sob, it makes you laugh instead. It’s just beautifully written and while I’ve loved many characters, I really, really cared about Lonnie Collins Motion (aka Locomotion). You will too.
When I was done, I was thinking about short books and how they encourage kids to read. The author Art Slade once told me that his book TRIBES is his shortest book and kids invariably pick it up only to find it’s probably one of his deepest, though provoking books (and one of my favorites). You could say the same about this book. I hope that many a kid picks it up for a book report and gets their socks knocked off!
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