About This Book:
The summer before middle school is a time of anxiety and change. A pitch-perfect novel in verse about one girl’s wish to simultaneously break free and to belong.
In the summer before her first year of middle school, word-chanting, rope-skipping Phee skips her way to imagined fame, writes down her innermost secret thoughts from the safety of a treehouse, and imagines in horror that her new classmates will eat her alive. Suddenly, her well-worn alley world feels too small. So when Mercy Jones moves next door, along with Mercy’s skateboard and her don’t-mess-with-me attitude, Phee sees the chance for her universe to expand. Even if it means leaving some things behind . . . It is a time of dares, of a legendary dog named Bull, of stretching comfort zones, and of old friendships made over in new ways. And it all takes place over the course of one alley summer.
One Alley Summer is and easily accessible novel in verse for middle grade readers. Phee, as a deeply relatable character and narrator, perfectly captures the universally fraught time of the summer between elementary and middle school, tapping into the anxiety we all know so well.
*Review Contributed By Adrien Guerra, Staff Reviewer*
Summer Read about Transitioning between Elementary and Middle School
One Alley Summer is a story that is told in verse about friendship and growing up. This story takes place in the summer between Phee’s first year of middle school, when she tries to fit in but also branches out of her comfort zone. Mercy has just moved in next door and Phee sees an opportunity to branch out, but this may mean leaving some things she finds comforting behind.
What I Liked: I love reading books written in verse because they give you a different experience. I love that there are now more books for a younger audience being written this way as it introduces a new way of reading. I find that books written in verse can be easier to get into because there are fewer words on the page and children who may struggle with reading may gravitate towards this.
I enjoyed the narrator’s voice throughout this book as it reads like an 11-year-old telling you a story. I appreciated that the author kept that voice in there as this makes the book relatable to a younger audience. There were moments in which you could feel Phee’s fear and worries as she tried to navigate the changes in her life.
What Left Me Wanting More: There were moments that I felt didn’t wrap up completely and I wanted to know more about. While I wanted to know more about these moments and hear about Phee’s feelings in those instances I was also appreciative that these were left out. I liked that we were privy to some of Phee’s private thoughts but not everything that went on in the summer.
Final Verdict: This is a great story for those who are transitioning between elementary and middle school as it captures the anxiety that comes along with that. This is also a book that others can enjoy as well as it captures the feelings of trying something new and being scared of what that brings.
