The Care and Keeping of Freddy
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The Care and Keeping of Freddy by Susan Hill Long
For fans of Kate DiCamillo and Sharon Creech comes this sweet and funny middle grade novel about a young girl, her pet bearded dragon, and the friends who make her summer one to remember. Georgia Weathers's worry machine has been on full blast since her mom, Blythe, took off in Lyle Lenczycki's blue sedan. Earlier that same day, Blythe gave Georgia a bearded dragon named Freddy. Georgia is convinced that if she loves Freddy enough, Blythe will come home. Georgia isn't the only one with family predicaments. Her friend Maria Garcia's parents have merrily moved out of the house and into a camper in the yard. Roland Park is the new boy in town. As a kid in the foster care system staying with the Farley family, he's sure his stay is temporary. When the three friends discover an abandoned glass house in the forest, it becomes their secret hideout: a place all their own, free of parents and problems. But glass can be broken. When everything around them feels out of their control, the question becomes what can they hold on to? And what do they have to let go? It turns out, there are some things--and lizards--they can count on.
An honest, accessibly written look at family and the challenges of loving people who may prove hurtful, one that's both raw and warm in its compassionate telling* -- Publishers Weekly *
A sincere story of caring and community in the face of family struggles. * -- Kirkus *
Georgia is given Freddy, a bearded dragon, as a pet by her mother, Blythe, who abandons her that very same day.
Blythe runs away with her boyfriend, Lyle, leaving Georgia with her quiet, devoted father, Stanley. Georgia, 11, longs for Blythe to return-and makes Freddy a proxy for her mother's love, vowing to do her best for him. Georgia's life is further upended when a larger-than-life boy arrives in their small Maine town, a foster child taken in by a highly religious family. Roly's acquaintance with Georgia and her best friend, Maria, begins after he steals a cat collar from the pet store. Despite witnessing this shocking event, the girls become good friends with him, and the three find a secret refuge in the woods, a glass house that ultimately becomes a danger zone. Strong friendships, parental love (and neglect), and resilient children feature in this slice-of-contemporary-small-town life. Georgia copes with her situation through help from peers and sympathetic adult friends (Maria's paternal grandmother plays an important role, giving Georgia loving advice). This is a realistic, sometimes humorous, sometimes sad family story; while Blythe has problems with alcohol, both Stanley and Lyle turn out to be good fathers. The book follows a White default for most characters; Maria is Mexican American.
A sincere story of caring and community in the face of family struggles. -- Kirkus Reviews * September 1, 2021 *
On the day Georgia Weathers's mother, Blythe, leaves their small Maine town with an old flame, Blythe buys Georgia a bearded dragon, Freddy. One year and eight months later, now 11-year-old Georgia, who is white, and her best friend Maria Elena Garcia, who is Mexican American, meet Roland Park, a redheaded new arrival in Prospect Harbor. When Roland, a foster child, shoplifts from the pet shop, the girls chase after him, and a friendship is born. And Georgia will need her friends when her mother announces that she, her new husband, and Rosie, Georgia's baby half sister, are moving back to town. Georgia loves Rosie on first sight, but her plan to shove her stepfather out of the picture and reunite her parents proves difficult as her mother becomes increasingly challenging and requests more of Georgia. Over the course of the summer, Georgia and her friends must lean on one another as they each face different family struggles. Long (Josie Bloom and the Emergency of Life) offers an honest, accessibly written look at family and the challenges of loving people who may prove hurtful, one that's both raw and warm in its compassionate telling. Ages 8-12. (Oct.) -- Publishers Weekly * September 13, 2021 *
A sincere story of caring and community in the face of family struggles. * -- Kirkus *
Georgia is given Freddy, a bearded dragon, as a pet by her mother, Blythe, who abandons her that very same day.
Blythe runs away with her boyfriend, Lyle, leaving Georgia with her quiet, devoted father, Stanley. Georgia, 11, longs for Blythe to return-and makes Freddy a proxy for her mother's love, vowing to do her best for him. Georgia's life is further upended when a larger-than-life boy arrives in their small Maine town, a foster child taken in by a highly religious family. Roly's acquaintance with Georgia and her best friend, Maria, begins after he steals a cat collar from the pet store. Despite witnessing this shocking event, the girls become good friends with him, and the three find a secret refuge in the woods, a glass house that ultimately becomes a danger zone. Strong friendships, parental love (and neglect), and resilient children feature in this slice-of-contemporary-small-town life. Georgia copes with her situation through help from peers and sympathetic adult friends (Maria's paternal grandmother plays an important role, giving Georgia loving advice). This is a realistic, sometimes humorous, sometimes sad family story; while Blythe has problems with alcohol, both Stanley and Lyle turn out to be good fathers. The book follows a White default for most characters; Maria is Mexican American.
A sincere story of caring and community in the face of family struggles. -- Kirkus Reviews * September 1, 2021 *
On the day Georgia Weathers's mother, Blythe, leaves their small Maine town with an old flame, Blythe buys Georgia a bearded dragon, Freddy. One year and eight months later, now 11-year-old Georgia, who is white, and her best friend Maria Elena Garcia, who is Mexican American, meet Roland Park, a redheaded new arrival in Prospect Harbor. When Roland, a foster child, shoplifts from the pet shop, the girls chase after him, and a friendship is born. And Georgia will need her friends when her mother announces that she, her new husband, and Rosie, Georgia's baby half sister, are moving back to town. Georgia loves Rosie on first sight, but her plan to shove her stepfather out of the picture and reunite her parents proves difficult as her mother becomes increasingly challenging and requests more of Georgia. Over the course of the summer, Georgia and her friends must lean on one another as they each face different family struggles. Long (Josie Bloom and the Emergency of Life) offers an honest, accessibly written look at family and the challenges of loving people who may prove hurtful, one that's both raw and warm in its compassionate telling. Ages 8-12. (Oct.) -- Publishers Weekly * September 13, 2021 *
Long, Susan Hill: - Susan Hill Long was inspired to write this book when she heard Garrison Keillor, on his program The Writer's Almanac, talk about a group of men working underground in the mines, unaware of anything out-of-the-ordinary happening above until the power went out. It was the Great Tri-State Tornado of 1925; nearly 700 people in Missouri, Indiana and Illinois were killed that day. Susan has worked as an editor and has written several books for beginning readers. Her awards include Bank Street College Best Books, and The Katherine Paterson Prize. This is her first novel.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781534475199 |
| ISBN 10 | 1534475192 |
| Title | The Care and Keeping of Freddy |
| Author | Susan Hill Long |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster |
| Year published | 2021-10-19 |
| Number of pages | 240 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |