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gmamartha's review against another edition
3.0
Cynthia Lord does not disappoint. I love these characters and the emotions they deal with.
roseleaf24's review against another edition
3.0
The writing felt stilted to me at times, but otherwise this is a lovely story about a summer at a lake. Lucy is moving to a beach house in New Hampshire, but she makes friends who will only be there for the summer. She's working on a photo contest that will be judged by her father, who is travelling for his work and away from home for a long stretch of time. While the story is interesting and unique, the challenges met with are universal.
sallyavena's review against another edition
3.0
A child's perspective of Alzheimer's. Full review over at Compass Book Ratings: http://www.compassbookratings.com/reviews/index.php/review/view/1127
onceuponacarm's review against another edition
2.0
Lucy and her parents have just moved, again, this time to a cottage on a lake in New Hampshire. She's apprehensive about making friends with the kids next door, since she's had too many experiences being the soon-forgotten new kid. This time, though, she finds some really nice friends in Nate, Emily, and Grandma Lilah. They invite her to join them on a project to document and protect the lake's loons. Lucy, in turn, accepts Nate's enthusiastic participation in a photography contest she's thinking of entering. She inherited a love of photography from her dad, who is a professional, but can't seem to see Lucy's talent and passion. Her dad is the judge of the photography contest, so Lucy hopes to show him, by submitting her entry under a different name, that she is more talented than he gives her credit for.
There's nothing wrong with this story, except that it's extremely predictable and Lucy and her father are kind of unbearable. I understand the passion of an artist for his/her craft, but the dad is a jerk about it. He's never there for his daughter, reacts callously when she is upset, and can't seem to step away from his job for even a second to be a father. Ugh. I know there are parents like this in the real world, but I just couldn't stand him. And then there's Lucy, who is obsessed with taking pictures to the point of becoming dangerously like her father. She's also mostly innocent and tries to do good, but I just didn't like being in her head. Plus, for a book so focused on photography, it seems to me there should have been some photographs! I would have liked to see Lucy's, her father's, and some of the other contestants' photos so I could have judged them for myself instead of just taking Lucy's word for it. A link to view them online would have been awesome.
The first star was earned for the way the author captured summertime at a special vacation spot. The fleeting sense of summer, of intense emotions packed into a brief period of time, and the kind of place you can't help but savor being in.
The second star was earned for the raw, authentic way that Grandma Lilah's first stages of dementia and her family's reactions were handled. The heartache of slowly losing someone (or from Lilah's perspective, slowly losing yourself) was palpable; I felt the family's tension and fear, as well as Lucy's discomfort and struggle to completely understand as a sort-of outsider who had already come to love Grandma Lilah.
I had hoped this would make the cut for my school's mock Newbery club, but it just didn't stand out like I wanted it to.
There's nothing wrong with this story, except that it's extremely predictable and Lucy and her father are kind of unbearable. I understand the passion of an artist for his/her craft, but the dad is a jerk about it. He's never there for his daughter, reacts callously when she is upset, and can't seem to step away from his job for even a second to be a father. Ugh. I know there are parents like this in the real world, but I just couldn't stand him. And then there's Lucy, who is obsessed with taking pictures to the point of becoming dangerously like her father. She's also mostly innocent and tries to do good, but I just didn't like being in her head. Plus, for a book so focused on photography, it seems to me there should have been some photographs! I would have liked to see Lucy's, her father's, and some of the other contestants' photos so I could have judged them for myself instead of just taking Lucy's word for it. A link to view them online would have been awesome.
The first star was earned for the way the author captured summertime at a special vacation spot. The fleeting sense of summer, of intense emotions packed into a brief period of time, and the kind of place you can't help but savor being in.
The second star was earned for the raw, authentic way that Grandma Lilah's first stages of dementia and her family's reactions were handled. The heartache of slowly losing someone (or from Lilah's perspective, slowly losing yourself) was palpable; I felt the family's tension and fear, as well as Lucy's discomfort and struggle to completely understand as a sort-of outsider who had already come to love Grandma Lilah.
I had hoped this would make the cut for my school's mock Newbery club, but it just didn't stand out like I wanted it to.
alaskanmichelle's review against another edition
5.0
Lucy moves to a small tourist town that hosts mostly summer vacationers. Her father, a famous photographer, leaves on assignment and Lucy decides to enter a photo contest that he is judging. Lucy meets Nate, the boy next door, as she set off to capture photos for this contest and their friendship blossoms.
Lucy is welcomed into Nate's family as she joins the "Loon Patrol" and discovers that Nate's grandmother is suffering from dementia and sees first hand how his family is struggling with this realization.
A must read for any middle-grade reader.
Disclosure: I received this book free in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much for the opportunity. Reviews are published on Goodreads and Amazon.
Lucy is welcomed into Nate's family as she joins the "Loon Patrol" and discovers that Nate's grandmother is suffering from dementia and sees first hand how his family is struggling with this realization.
A must read for any middle-grade reader.
Disclosure: I received this book free in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much for the opportunity. Reviews are published on Goodreads and Amazon.
brandypainter's review against another edition
3.0
Half a Chance is a short fast read, which is good because not a lot happens in the book. It is one of those slow books about a summer at a lake with bird watching and a grandmother who is slowly losing her memory. It is also a book about friendship, family, and photography. All of these elements combine well. The characters are portrayed very simply and without a lot of depth but they are relatable. Nothing about the book stood out as being special or something to take note of though.
aimeelio's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not sure how this book made its way on to my wish list. It was cute, and sweet but way more juvenile than I'm accustomed to. For that reason, only 3 stars.
rdyourbookcase's review against another edition
3.0
I read this because it was getting buzz for the Newbery. It was a great story. I especially liked the main character and the setting. I probably wouldn’t pick it for the award, though.
cstoeger's review against another edition
4.0
Read my review here:
http://cbabblings.blogspot.com/2015/01/half-chance-by-cynthia-lord.html
http://cbabblings.blogspot.com/2015/01/half-chance-by-cynthia-lord.html
storywarden's review against another edition
4.0
Short and sweet. I find it funny sometimes how much I can relate to 11 year old fictitious characters.