Tween Read: Love Like Sky

Publication date: November 6, 2018

Description

"Love ain't like that." "How is it then?" Peaches asked, turning on her stomach to face me. "It's like sky. If you keep driving and driving, gas will run out, right?" "That's why we gotta go to the gas station." "Yep. But have you ever seen the sky run out? No matter how far we go?" "No, when we look up, there it is." "Well that's the kind of love Daddy and Mama got for us, Peaches--love like sky." "It never ends?" "Never." G-baby and her younger sister, Peaches, are still getting used to their "blended-up" family. They live with Mama and Frank out in the suburbs, and they haven't seen their real daddy much since he married Millicent. G-baby misses her best friend back in Atlanta, and is crushed that her glamorous new stepsister, Tangie, wants nothing to do with her. G-baby is so preoccupied with earning Tangie's approval that she isn't there for her own little sister when she needs her most. Peaches gets sick— really sick. Suddenly, Mama and Daddy are arguing like they did before the divorce, and even the doctors at the hospital don't know how to help Peaches get better. It's up to G-baby to put things right. She knows Peaches can be strong again if she can only see that their family's love for her really is like sky.

My Thoughts:

I am showing my age and upper elementary or tween readers do not know Judy Blume's work as well as I did at this age, but this book reminds me of a Judy Blume book because the perspective of the main character stays true to that age. Youngblood, like Blume does a great job of speaking to girl tween readers at their level. The author tackles the difficulties of fitting into a blended family, navigating the middle child issues, balancing love for both parents and step parents, loyalty, guilt, friendship, sisterhood, bullying and young love. 

Love Like Sky legitimizes the complexities that even tweens go through. They are young but want to be old. They want to know what is going on and do not want to be treated like babies or "protected" from the truth. 

This is both heartbreaking and uplifting -- always a good combination.

Last words:

We'll love her. . .like sky," I whispered, and wished for the wind to whisk my words straight up to heaven.

An advanced copy provided by the publisher and Net Galley for an honest review.