Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.21 AVERAGE
4.21 AVERAGE
Really sweet, heartwarming book about Carley, a girl placed in foster care after a violent incident involving her stepfather. I think kids will relate to and like this book.
I realize people love this book, and that I'm going to sound like a jerk for not liking it. One for the Murphys has its heart in the right place. I even teared up at the end, because, yes, I am human.
But.
I don't buy it.
My children were adopted from traumatic backgrounds, and it is NOT THIS EASY. Carly is too put together, too functional, and everything is too pat. Her worst behavior is ordering too many dinner rolls and running away for a few hours. We'd consider that a pretty normal day at my house. Also, she efficiently wins over Mr. Murphy, Danny, and Toni--everyone she wants to, basically. It is just not that simple--"Oh, she just needs love and a good example, and she'll be fine." Trauma hard-wires maladaptive behavior, and it takes lots of time and work to change the brain's functionality.
Also, the dialogue sounded like something I'd write, from my middle aged mom-ness. Hunt, like me, may spend time around teenagers and kids, but she does not have the gift of capturing how they really sound. Think S.E. Hinton, think Matt de la Peña, think Beverly Cleary, think Isabel Quintero. They all captured the way kids talk to each other for real.
I do give Hunt credit for how she resolves the story. I really would've been pissed if she'd taken the easy way out.
But.
I don't buy it.
My children were adopted from traumatic backgrounds, and it is NOT THIS EASY. Carly is too put together, too functional, and everything is too pat. Her worst behavior is ordering too many dinner rolls and running away for a few hours. We'd consider that a pretty normal day at my house. Also, she efficiently wins over Mr. Murphy, Danny, and Toni--everyone she wants to, basically. It is just not that simple--"Oh, she just needs love and a good example, and she'll be fine." Trauma hard-wires maladaptive behavior, and it takes lots of time and work to change the brain's functionality.
Also, the dialogue sounded like something I'd write, from my middle aged mom-ness. Hunt, like me, may spend time around teenagers and kids, but she does not have the gift of capturing how they really sound. Think S.E. Hinton, think Matt de la Peña, think Beverly Cleary, think Isabel Quintero. They all captured the way kids talk to each other for real.
I do give Hunt credit for how she resolves the story. I really would've been pissed if she'd taken the easy way out.
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Oh good lord, what a tearjerker. I mean, er, well that sure packed an emotional punch, now didn't it? Plucky kid from a difficult background finds awesome foster family and... onwards into healing and fighting and building relationships and remembering what happened that got her there. Very well written, hard to put down, it's not riding the empathy train, it's driving it at 500 miles/hour.
From the Publisher:
In the wake of heart-breaking betrayal, Carley Connors is thrust into foster care and left on the steps of the Murphys, a happy, bustling family.
Carley has thick walls and isn't rattled easily, but this is a world she just doesn't understand. A world that frightens her. So, she resists this side of life she'd believed did not exist with dinners around a table and a "zip your jacket, here's you lunch" kind of mom.
However, with the help of her Broadway-obsessed and unpredictable friend, Toni, the Murphys do the impossible in showing Carley what it feels like to belong somewhere. But, when her mother wants her back, will she lose the only family she has ever known?
My Thoughts:
In One of the Murphys, 12 year old Carley was repeatedly told by her mother to never cry, or people would think she is weak. This admonishment makes Carley's life in foster care very difficult.
Now, Carley has closed herself off from feeling any real emotion, covering up her hidden feelings with a smart mouth, a mouth that provoked her stepfather enough to badly beat both Carley and her mother. But in foster care with the Murphys, Carley may have met her match in Mrs. Murphy. Mrs. Murphy is the exact opposite of Carley real mother, in fact, she seems to be an almost too good to be true wife and mother, and she refuses to give up on Carley, no matter what Carley's says or how badly Carley acts out - and there is some pretty (understandably) bad acting out at times. Turns out, Mrs. Murphy has a secret that just may to the trick.
One of the themes in One of the Murphys is about heroes. The youngest Murhpy boy is obsessed with superheroes, so much so that he has a sign hanging in his bedroom (where Carley now sleeps) that says Be Someone's Hero. But not all heroes need super powers to be someone's hero, and this idea becomes a theme that runs throughout the novel and a constant sad reminder to Carley that she does not have a hero in her life and secretly wants one - very badly.
Hunt's characters are well done, having both dimension and personality. Mr. Murphy is a fire fighter and away from home much of the time, leaving his wife with lots of time to focus on Carley. Unlike his wife, he is not really happy to have a foster child in his home; the eldest boy resents Carley, but the younger two rather like her. And it is Carley who teaches her friend Toni, obsessed with the play Wicked, to not judge a person based on appearances, throwing the message of Wicked right back at Toni. They are all realistically drawn and likable in their own way.
Of course, at the heart of the novel is Carley's inner emotional struggle. Though she still loves her mother, she must face the fact that her mother may have played a part when she was beaten by her stepfather. Carley knows that she will go back to her mother and she must come to terms with the fact that her mother is never going to be the kind of mother Mrs. Murphy is. It's a tall order for a young girl.
One of the Murphs is Lynda Mullaly Hunt's first MG novel, and it turns out to be one of those middle grade books that is really a must read. I liked it very much, and feel the underlying message is one we can all take away with us: Be Someone's Hero
This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was obtained from the publisher.
In the wake of heart-breaking betrayal, Carley Connors is thrust into foster care and left on the steps of the Murphys, a happy, bustling family.
Carley has thick walls and isn't rattled easily, but this is a world she just doesn't understand. A world that frightens her. So, she resists this side of life she'd believed did not exist with dinners around a table and a "zip your jacket, here's you lunch" kind of mom.
However, with the help of her Broadway-obsessed and unpredictable friend, Toni, the Murphys do the impossible in showing Carley what it feels like to belong somewhere. But, when her mother wants her back, will she lose the only family she has ever known?
My Thoughts:
In One of the Murphys, 12 year old Carley was repeatedly told by her mother to never cry, or people would think she is weak. This admonishment makes Carley's life in foster care very difficult.
Now, Carley has closed herself off from feeling any real emotion, covering up her hidden feelings with a smart mouth, a mouth that provoked her stepfather enough to badly beat both Carley and her mother. But in foster care with the Murphys, Carley may have met her match in Mrs. Murphy. Mrs. Murphy is the exact opposite of Carley real mother, in fact, she seems to be an almost too good to be true wife and mother, and she refuses to give up on Carley, no matter what Carley's says or how badly Carley acts out - and there is some pretty (understandably) bad acting out at times. Turns out, Mrs. Murphy has a secret that just may to the trick.
One of the themes in One of the Murphys is about heroes. The youngest Murhpy boy is obsessed with superheroes, so much so that he has a sign hanging in his bedroom (where Carley now sleeps) that says Be Someone's Hero. But not all heroes need super powers to be someone's hero, and this idea becomes a theme that runs throughout the novel and a constant sad reminder to Carley that she does not have a hero in her life and secretly wants one - very badly.
Hunt's characters are well done, having both dimension and personality. Mr. Murphy is a fire fighter and away from home much of the time, leaving his wife with lots of time to focus on Carley. Unlike his wife, he is not really happy to have a foster child in his home; the eldest boy resents Carley, but the younger two rather like her. And it is Carley who teaches her friend Toni, obsessed with the play Wicked, to not judge a person based on appearances, throwing the message of Wicked right back at Toni. They are all realistically drawn and likable in their own way.
Of course, at the heart of the novel is Carley's inner emotional struggle. Though she still loves her mother, she must face the fact that her mother may have played a part when she was beaten by her stepfather. Carley knows that she will go back to her mother and she must come to terms with the fact that her mother is never going to be the kind of mother Mrs. Murphy is. It's a tall order for a young girl.
One of the Murphs is Lynda Mullaly Hunt's first MG novel, and it turns out to be one of those middle grade books that is really a must read. I liked it very much, and feel the underlying message is one we can all take away with us: Be Someone's Hero
This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was obtained from the publisher.
This is a heartbreaking yet wonderful book. I loved it, but expected nothing less from Lunda Mullaly Hunt. She is such a great author!
3 1/2 stars for this short and sweet novel that ALMOST made me want to become a foster parent. Carley's voice was so authentic and her fears so real, Hunt must have had some experience with damaged children. I felt so much admiration for Julie Murphy, the fictional foster mother; the world needs more people with that much love to give.
My goodness does this book have all the feels! Carly is taken from her mom after there is an incident with her mom and her step-dad. Carly is hurt and her mom is seriously injured.
She is placed with the Murphy family for her foster care. In this home, Carly sees love like she never knew could exist. She sees a mom who loves her kids, even when the mess up. She sees a dad who is actually in the picture and loves both his wife and his children. She goes to school and makes friends. But she does still have a mom, and Mrs. Murhpy is not her mom. What a struggle!
Read this book at home with tissues nearby, you will need them!
She is placed with the Murphy family for her foster care. In this home, Carly sees love like she never knew could exist. She sees a mom who loves her kids, even when the mess up. She sees a dad who is actually in the picture and loves both his wife and his children. She goes to school and makes friends. But she does still have a mom, and Mrs. Murhpy is not her mom. What a struggle!
Read this book at home with tissues nearby, you will need them!
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated