Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
Amazing!! Believe it or not, I liked this even better than the other book of hers that I’ve read! *Recommend!!*
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Things about the foster care system just get me... ❤️
A 7th grader could not believe I hadn't read One for the Murphys and shoved it into my hands...and I'm so glad she did. Carly Connors suddenly finds herself placed in foster care after a horrible domestic violence episode lands her and her mother in the hospital. With her mother too injured from the attack to be released from the hospital, tough-cookie Carly moves in with the Murphys. Initially she stays aloof, not wanting to let anyone get to know her (and also feeling that she doesn't deserve anyone getting to know her) but the Murphys slowly show her what a loving home and family can look like. Carly is a clever and street-smart kid but has a lot to learn about sharing her emotions and opening her heart. I may or may not have teared up at the ending!
Grades 5 and up.
Grades 5 and up.
I am a blubbering mess. This book really hit me hard. I truly wish that I had read this as a kid because it would have made my life a little easier. I will recommend this book to my students every year from now on. I can see this staying with me for a long time.
Carley is a rebel with a rough past and I think a lot of kids can relate to her and the trauma she faced (I know that I did). This book truly shows the meaning of love and strength.
Carley is a rebel with a rough past and I think a lot of kids can relate to her and the trauma she faced (I know that I did). This book truly shows the meaning of love and strength.
Another book club book for my class! This one is a good one. ✨ I can’t wait for my students to meet Carley Connors and the Murphy’s.
Really touching story about a young woman who ends up in foster care and realizes what she deserves and has been missing in her own childhood. It’s heartwarming and a touch sad- but so well done. I love the narrator- Nora Hunter. She has the perfect voice for a young woman.
Positives:
1) I liked the main character a lot, and I loved the little boys.
2) A portrayal of the foster-care system that isn't all about abuse, and that also is directed towards reuniting parent's and children.
3) It deals with the challenges of loving when you may or definitely will not be a "forever family" to them, from both a foster family and a foster child's perspective.
Negatives:
1) I didn't like that the foster family seemed to jump into it in a very unprepared and spontaneous way, and wasn't united in the effort. It takes months or years of paperwork, checks, interviews etc to become a foster family. You definitely can't just walk into an office, overhear a conversation and say "I'll take that kid"
2) I felt not enough time was spent developing a reconciliation with the birth mom - it was a little abrupt and forced.
1) I liked the main character a lot, and I loved the little boys.
2) A portrayal of the foster-care system that isn't all about abuse, and that also is directed towards reuniting parent's and children.
3) It deals with the challenges of loving when you may or definitely will not be a "forever family" to them, from both a foster family and a foster child's perspective.
Negatives:
1) I didn't like that the foster family seemed to jump into it in a very unprepared and spontaneous way, and wasn't united in the effort. It takes months or years of paperwork, checks, interviews etc to become a foster family. You definitely can't just walk into an office, overhear a conversation and say "I'll take that kid"
2) I felt not enough time was spent developing a reconciliation with the birth mom - it was a little abrupt and forced.
I LOVED it!What a heartwarming story.I couldn't put it down.
A book with heart and spunk. If you don't cry a little, you're heartless.