Book Review: When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Book Review: When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead (2009) (Middle Grade) (Sci Fi/ Mystery) (Newberry Award Winner) 5 Stars *****

Do you believe in the possibility of time travel? Have events ever conspired to make you think there’s something going on in the world that you can’t prove but still makes you wonder? Set in the late 1970s, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, twelve-year-old Miranda now has a deeper understanding of friendships, familial and love relationships, the importance of community, and an appreciation of how all the little things people do add up to make the next person’s whole experience. Someone is leaving strange notes for Miranda to find. Who can it be? Why does this mysterious person know what the future holds before it has even happened?

Miranda is a regular, well-adjusted girl living with her mother in a run down building. Her father is out of the picture, but her mother’s very kind boyfriend acts as a male figure in Miranda’s life. They both pitch in to help Miranda’s mother practice for the popular TV Pyramid game show. With a grand prize of $20,000 flashing its smile, it’s practice, practice, practice every chance they get.

Miranda experiences the ebb and flow of school friendships. People’s feelings get hurt, or they have a change of heart but somehow they don’t communicate any of this until much later, after things have gone south, leaving confusion in their wake.

As in most New York City stories, we meet the local grocery store and deli owners, the resident corner crazy homeless man, the group of young bullies who bother younger kids, classmates of different socio-economic groups, and school employees with quirky personalities. All in all, the community is cohesive, working together to get through the day and helping one another wherever possible.

The kids are independent, sometimes more than they want to be. Classmates work cooperatively but also compete. Often, the walk home from school invokes fear and a lot of crossing to the other side of the street to avoid perceived danger. This situation is alleviated when friends walk together, or better yet, when a parent is present. But for those alone times …

At the end, Miranda solves the mystery of the elusive letter writer. It’s no one she initially suspects. The clues are vague and veiled as commonplace observations.

I loved the book and its focus on mainstream characters and the interconnectedness of the community in which they live. It’s reassuring for young readers that there are people who lead regular lives—not charmed, but free from dysfunction. My only negative reaction is the ending where the identity of the mysterious letter writer is revealed. It’s unclear to me how Miranda deduced all the pieces of the puzzle and extrapolated various manifestations of the letter writer’s persona.

 

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I wish you all a life inspired by the wonder of the world around us. May you find and live your truth, in harmony with people, nature and the environment. May you be a force for good and a source of love and comfort. May the world be a better place for you having lived and loved here.

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