So B. It

So B. It
by Sarah Weeks

From the publisher:
"You couldn′t really tell about Mama′s brain just from looking at her, but it was obvious as soon as she spoke. She had a high voice, like a little girl′s, and she only knew 23 words. I know this for a fact, because we kept a list of the things Mama said tacked to the inside of the kitchen cabinet. Most of the words were common ones, like good and more and hot, but there was one word only my mother said: soof.

Although she lives an unconventional lifestyle with her mentally disabled mother and their doting neighbour, Bernadette, Heidi has a lucky streak that has a way of pointing her in the right direction. When a mysterious word in her mother′s vocabulary begins to haunt her, Heidi′s thirst for the truth leads her on a cross-country journey in search of the secrets of her past"

This is a sweet, easy read that I finished in one sitting. At times heartbreaking, funny, sweet and touching, it kept me reading happily while hoping for a good ending. Heidi, our little heroine, has been raised in a very strange household and comes to a point in her life where she is desperate to learn where she came from. As she goes on her quest, she meets some interesting people and her eyes are opened up to the world around her. I didn't really buy into the whole "luck" theme, and I'm not sure how I felt about parts of the ending, but I still enjoyed the book. I believe this was the author's first middle grade book, and I will definitely be looking at her others. 

Areas of concern:
*A mentally disabled mother raising a daughter who has no idea who her father or any family members are. 
*A friend who lies to hide the truth.

Suggested Ages:

Publisher's Weekly - Ages 10+

School Library Journal - Grades 6-9