Review Detail

Is it grand theft auto if it’s your daddy’s truck? Is it kidnapping if she’s your sister? Is it even wrong if you’re chasing your runaway mother? In THE MAP OF ME, Margie never even pauses to ask these questions. As soon as she sees her mother’s note that says, “I have to go,” she grabs her annoying sister, Peep, her daddy’s keys, and hits the road. This wouldn’t be too shocking if Margie wasn’t twelve years old.

Author Tami Lewis Brown has created two sisters who couldn’t be more different. Younger sister Peep is an overachiever: she skipped three grades, is perfect in the eyes of all adults, and needs to figure out all the angles before doing anything. Margie is the opposite, all bold actions and impulsive mistakes. Margie is tortured by her perceived flaws, flashing back to them throughout the novel.

Although THE MAP OF ME takes place in a stolen car, most of the story is internal. It may progress slowly for middle grade readers who want more action or a neater resolution. Instead, they get a character study of a girl who is determined to persevere and keep moving forward.


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