Getting Near to Baby

Getting Near to Baby
Age Range
10+
Release Date
September 13, 1999
ISBN
0698118928
Buy This Book
     
A Southern charmer for fans of Newbery Honor book Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage
Audrey Couloumbis's masterful debut novel brings to mind Karen Hesse, Katherine Paterson, and Betsy Byars's The Summer of the Swans—it is a story you will never forget. 

Willa Jo and Little Sister are up on the roof at Aunt Patty’s house. Willa Jo went up to watch the sunrise, and Little Sister followed, like she always does. But by mid-morning, they are still up on that roof, and soon it’s clear it wasn’t just the sunrise that brought them there. 

The trouble is, coming down would mean they’d have to explain, and they just can’t find the words. 

This is a funny, sometimes heartbreaking, story about sisters, about grief, and about healing.  Two girls must come to terms with the death of their baby sister, their mother’s unshakable depression, and the ridiculously controlling aunt who takes them in and means well but just doesn’t understand children. Willa Jo has to try and make things right in their new home, but she and Aunt Patty keep butting heads. Until the morning the two girls climb up to the roof of her house. Aunt Patty tries everything she can think of to get them down, but in the end, the solution is miraculously simple.

A Newbery Honor Book

An ALA Notable Book

A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

User reviews

1 review
Overall rating
 
1.0
Plot
 
1.0(1)
Characters
 
N/A(0)
Writing Style
 
N/A(0)
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
 
N/A(0)
Already have an account? or Create an account
Great book!
(Updated: July 10, 2026)
Overall rating
 
1.0
Plot
 
1.0
Characters
 
N/A
Writing Style
 
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
 
N/A
Reader reviewed by Jamie

This book is sad but at the same time a great book that I have read over and over again!


Although thirteen-year-old Willa Jo and her Aunt Patty seem to be constantly at odds, staying with her and Uncle Hob helps Willa Jo and her younger sister come to terms with the death of their family's baby. Willa Jo's family hasn't been the same since Baby's death--Willa's younger sister stopped talking, and their mother can't take care of them anymore. Twelve-year-old Willa Jo feels as if her life is falling apart and that no one understands how she feels. Even though she knows she must help her family, Willa Jo isn't sure how she can even take the first step to help herself.
G
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0