The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead
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Web ID: 14352539Great book about family and growing up!
What a beautiful story about divorce, new families, growing up in two homes and friendship. Following Bea’s journey through “tweenhood” as she struggles with her feelings and finds her truth with the help of her family and her therapist. Bea is relatable, likable and a character I think any middle grader would love to read about.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
The list of Things that Will Not Change
As usual, Rebecca Stead writes about people we want to know and who already feel familiar. Her main characters come alive, and even the secondary characters are strong. Bea, a child of amicably divorced parents, finds it difficult to live two lives, one with each parent. She compares her double lives to watching two moons outside her window. But as she matures, she adjusts. Her father is openly gay, and his partner, Jesse, comes to live with them. Finally, the two men decide to get married. Bea is super excited because she loves Jesse and because he has a daughter her age, the sister she's always wanted. But when she and Sonia finally meet, things do not go smoothly, and Bea questions if they will ever be friends. There is much to like here. The relationships seem multi-layered and real. The wedding details are exquisite. While the couple face prejudice, they prevail with the love and support of their inner circle of family and friends. I recommend this book to fans of well-written, realistic fiction that helps one see multiple points of view. Recommended for grades five through eight.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Love and its challenges in many forms
Beatrice is a middle school student dealing with her parents’ divorce after her father reveals that he is gay. Bea’s first person account follows her experience non-linearly from before her parents’ announcement to her father’s eventual marriage to Jesse, who was also married to a woman and has a daughter Bea’s age. While Bea seems excited at the prospect of a sister, her new step-father Jesse, and helping plan the wedding, she clearly has some stress and anxiety that she works out with her therapist. Bea is put in situations, sometimes by her own choices, that require her to learn the hard way about family struggles, bigotry, fear and insecurity, love, and forgiveness. I have read all of Rebecca Stead’s books with my nine-year-old daughter. When we discovered the upcoming publication of THE LIST OF THINGS THAT WILL NOT CHANGE she was eager for more from her favorite author. I was concerned the subject would be too much for her. I was wrong. She embraced Bea, was excited for the wedding, asked intelligent questions, and understood the story better than i expect many adults would have. This is a beautiful story of love and its challenges in many forms. Another five star book from Rebecca Stead.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great Story about Divorce
This book tells the story of Bea whose life is changing due to her parents getting divorced and her dad remarrying a man. It goes back and forth through time as Bea shares stories about herself and how things got to where they are now. I really enjoy when middle-grade books feature a character that acts their age and in which you can see their growth as they mature and encounter different obstacles. This was something that I felt was captured well in this book, I think it was great to see how Bea changed over time and how she recalled a lot of the big events in her life. Something else that I enjoyed in this book was the way that emotions were captured and handled. I enjoyed the moments that Bea has with her therapist, Miriam, as it gives a great way to handle certain emotions and I think it begins to normalize therapy for those who are reading this. I like that this book addresses mental health and in a way, it addresses anxiety and normalizes worrying to a certain extent. Something else that I really enjoyed was the way Mission not accepting his brother due to his sexuality was handled. I think the homophobia in this book was handled well and it was appropriate for the ages it is written for. It was written in a way that is realistic but also in a way that shows compassion and how you will have people who support you and those are the ones who matter. I think this is a great book for grades 3-7 in which children may be facing difficult feelings and challenges in their life. It's nice to see that nothing in this book seems trivial and the therapist never dismisses Bea's feelings.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Bea just may become your new best friend
Bea's family is growing. How will Bea handle the changes? She will handle them with her positive outlook on life. I really liked getting to know Bea and her family. I won't forget them for a long time! When Bea's parents divorced they began the List of Things That will NOT Change. The list begins with the love her parents and that they will always live close to each other. Bea adjusts to the two different homes and after a few years she is excited that her father is going to remarry. This means that she will not only get another dad but she will also get a sister that is her age. Bea has high expectations about her new sister and at first these expectations are a bit too high. However, with her positive outlook things will most likely turn out just fine! I know that every reader of this book will want to have (or be) a friend like Bea.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Love this book!
Rebecca Stead gives narrator and main character Bea a distinct voice as she narrates her life, past and present from age 8 to 13. Bea is not your typical character in a middle grade novel. When her parents divorced when she was eight, she was anxious about all the changes coming. Her parents gave her a journal called "The List of Things that Will Not Change." They began the list by declaring their unchanging love for her. Two years after the divorce, Bea's dad wants to remarry Jesse. Jesse has a daughter Bea's age in California. Bea has always wanted a sister and has high hopes for the new relationship. Bea's emotions ring true throughout the book. Her anxiety and hopes seesaw, as is often the case with the age group. Bea's relationship with her therapist adds another layer as she helps Bea recognize the truths, prepare for and navigate the many changes that keep Bea from feeling sure footed. I highly recommend this book. I laughed and cried. I was hopeful and angry. Many young people will identify with Bea, find comfort, and come to realize that they don't need to be perfect to be loved. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review. This book will definitely be part of my middle school library's collection.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Top notch
A marvelous, clear, bright stream of a book. As someone who was in many ways a 1980-ish version of Bea - minus the summer home, therapist, demonstrative father - I felt connected to her & cared about what happened to her more than I expected. I’m not going to spoil this story with quotes or a synopsis: Bea’s story is built bit by bit, and as one reads, one does so without being distracted by the way the story is told, a rare trait in middle-grade fiction. Stead never talks down to her audience or sugar coats an unpleasantness. Bea is imperfect and makes mistakes; she panics and lashes out; she is utterly believable and Stead does a brilliant job of telling her story. I can’t recommend this highly enough: it is a satisfying, emotional, flawless novel that I know I will both recommend and reread. This copy was received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Perfect for middlegrade readers on up!
Heartfelt, innocent, filled with love, uncertainty and trust in those whose job is to always provide a safe place to land, Rebecca Stead’s THE LIST OF THINGS THAT WILL NEVER CHANGE is NOT written for adults. It is written for younger readers, told in the voice of a young girl who is experiencing life after divorce and while many things DO change, one thing young Bea knows, the love in her family is always there, no matter how its dynamics have been altered. Parents do not have to stay together, but they do owe their children a continuity of love, and security and Bea’s parents are what ALL divorced couples should be like. Beautifully told, steeped in family love, acceptance of circumstances and respect, Rebecca Stead has given voice to a child’s experience as an innocent caught up in the affairs of adults without earning the lasting scars of pain, hurt and the venom so many parents spew. Perfect for middlegrade readers, on up, just remember to “see” things as Bea does! Your heart will warm to this incredible tale. Give it as a gift for a family who may be facing major changes. I was invited to receive a complimentary ARC edition by Wendy Lamb Books! This is my honest and voluntary review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com