Anne Warren Smith

I love the message that every family is a "real family" regardless of who is missing from the "traditional" family structure. The fact that it is a single dad who is in the home while the mother is not is a very welcome part of it. I know many men who are single dads. It is refreshing to see them get a nod. I think it is also reaffirming to the children who are being raised by single dads to see one portrayed in a holiday book. I loved how both the fathers who were in the book were written of in a positive way. I fell in love with Katie, not so much with Claire , (who I think I was friends with). I could picture all the scenes in the book. This is an absolutely delightful Thanksgiving book.… (meer)

So you would think the last day of school would be celebratory but not for Katie Jordan because her former fourth grade teacher was the best teacher ever. Everybody's crying all over the place hugging Ms. Morgan. She's telling them everything special that she will miss about them. Katie's worried that she won't say anything nice about her. After all she's always messing things up. But Ms. Morgan is not like that and after reassuring everyone that they'll still be able to see her they all head off towards home which is also a teary procession for Katie because her best friend Sierra is going away this summer to her grandmother's house in Seattle. That means she's stuck with Claire. A forced friendship by their dad's since they live across the street from one another. Claire has a big summer project coming up--she's going to get Ms. Morgan to marry her dad. Katie doesn't know how to feel. She does have a mother but she's never home and is always singing in concerts but she still loves her and always talks likes she's there at night. But then again Ms. Morgan would be the best mother. Not only does she have to deal with Clair's summer project, not being able to see Sierra, but also she might have to move to Portland two hours away!

Well Katie Jordan was a well likable character. I felt really bad for her and her younger brother that their mother was never there for them. And then the brother, Tyler, got books from the library about animals looking for their mother. He would suck his thumb and say that baby is looking for his mother. Such a heart breaker! I thought Katie was selfish at times. I knew it was probably accurate how a kid would act at that age but sheesh. With the dog? So selfish. All the other times I felt sorry for her and genuinely liked her.

Claire... Claire, Claire, Claire, Claire, Claire.... I tried to forgive you some because you are smart enough to realize that blue is the best color out there. But boy you are sooo mean. You would want to roll your eyes at her too if you knew about her. She's a neat freak when it comes to anything basically. A rude neat freak and I hated the way she looked down at people. You're 10! You can't be acting like that at that age. Can you? I thought that Katie and her had an up and down relationship but I maybe saw one up so I don't really know anymore. They were both acting their age I know with the jealously and selfishness but still.... Anyways it did prove to be a really great book. Very realistic and it touched down on serious issues like her mother never being there. As you can tell I really got into it. It was better than I expected. It's worth reading.

http://shesgotbooksonhermind.blogspot.com/… (meer)

When your mom leaves the family to pursue a famous career as a performer, home life gets a little bit different. Thanksgiving is different. Good, but different. On Thanksgiving, Katie's annoying baby brother and her dad and she stay in their pajamas all day and eat pizza, not turkey. This all works out fine until her classmate Claire (who, like Katie, lives in a dad-only household) starts talking about their amazing Thanksgiving holiday that promises to be as idyllic as Martha Stewart. Katie is desperate to outdo Claire by having an even bigger extravaganza. There's only one problem: Dad, busy on deadline for yet another report, says no. So what happens when Katie accidentally invites her teacher to Thanksgiving? This gentle transitional chapter book shows readers two kinds of ways to celebrate Thanksgiving in a single-parent household. Continuing the series are TAILS OF SPRING BREAK and the forthcoming BITTERSWEET SUMMER. Recommended as a holiday book that's sweet without being syrupy. (61)… (meer)