TOUCH BLUE by Cynthia LordIndieBound Description:
Touch Blue and your wish will come true.
"Why take chances?" says eleven-year-old Tess Brooks. "Especially when it’s so easy to let the universe know what you want by touching blue or turning around three times or crossing your fingers."
But Tess is coming to know that it’s not always that simple.
The state of Maine plans to shut down her island’s schoolhouse, which would force Tess’s family to move to the mainland--and Tess to leave the only home she has ever known. Fortunately, the islanders have a plan too: increase the numbers of students by having several families take in foster children. So now Tess and her family are taking a chance on Aaron, a thirteen-year-old trumpet player who has been bounced from home to home. And Tess needs a plan of her own--and all the luck she can muster. Will Tess’s wish come true or will her luck run out?
Newbery Honor author Cynthia Lord offers a warm-hearted, humorous, and thoughtful look at what it means to belong--and how lucky we feel when we do. Touch Blue, sure as certain, will touch your heart.
My Thoughts
I admit I picked this up because at the moment, while struggling with my own book, I am interested in what book Newbery Honor authors write after winning. Expectations seem to run higher and I was curious how other authors handle the pressure. Cynthia Lord obviously handles it well, as this book was a touching and well-written. Tess is a completely believable narrator whom you immediately relate and root for; and the setting feels very authentic. It was a great book to read near the ocean--made me want to start my own collection of sea glass while on vacation!