Stead, R. (2009). When you reach me. Wendy Lamb Books.
Miranda is twelve years old and lives in New York, during the late seventies. She lives with her mother, and while they do not have a lot, she has her best friend Sal, and gets by. Everything is normal until a new kid, Marcus punches Sal while they are walking home from school.
After the punch, Sal becomes distant and stops talking to her. Miranda starts making new friends and meets Anne Marie, who just lost a friend too. One day she decides to confront the boy named Marcus, and finds that they have a lot in common, like their interest in time travel.
Miranda also begins to receive mysterious notes from a stranger who somehow seems to know the future and appears to be leaving a warning, with instructions for her. As things progress and come to a head, the people and circumstances become intertwined into a powerful crescendo that could mean life or death for someone close to her.
When you reach me is a book of many things. It is a book of coming of age, of Science Fiction, fantasy, and also a sort of period piece. This book easily fits into the Science Fiction genre with the inclusion of time travel, along with some fantasy elements. The author, Stead, cleverly builds suspense in mystery by showing small snippets of the future as it plays out in the story.
I can also see how this book fits into YA Lit because it tells the story from Miranda’s eyes. This allowed me to feel connected with Miranda, which is the point of YA lit. The subject matter of friendship and how quickly things can change, reflects common issues that are appropriate for this age range. I would recommend this book to middle grades because I think they will relate to the theme of friendship in this book. Since A Wrinkle in Time plays a big role in this book, I think it would be a great text-to-text connection if it was read too.
**Required YA author
http://www.rebeccasteadbooks.com/ (author’s webpage)
(Book Trailer)
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