C 2019 Pages 326
Goodreads Rating: 4.09
Calliope June has Tourette’s. She sometimes makes noises and weird faces. Other children make fun of her strange ways. This story is about the struggles of a middle school girl with Tourette’s who just wants to have a friend. Her mother moves from town to town, barely settling in one place before changing, they move again. That means a new school and new classmates for Callie to deal with.
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Jinsong and his family live next door to Callie and her mother. He dreams of being the pitcher on the local baseball team. They meet in the laundry room of their apartment building. She loves the moon and the stars, and dreams of traveling to space. Yes, he finds her weird movements odd, but it doesn’t stop their friendship from growing. But at school, Jinsong keeps his distance and Callie doesn’t understand why. He worries the other kids in their class won’t understand their friendship. He wants to be brave; to stand up to them when they tease Callie, but instead, he cowers quietly behind the others. She must fight for herself. And then she learns of another move to a new place, and this one with a new father. Her struggles are real, and her life is forever changing.
Callie experiences so many emotions in her young life; loneliness, hurtfulness, and anger; and now finally the feeling of having a good friend. Can Callie give up all that up to move? Will she ever have a friend like Jinsong again? This is a beautifully written story geared more towards middle school age group. It will bring a tear to your eye and a smile to your heart. Very touching!
Forget Me Not is the debut novel of Ellie Terry. Raised in the Western states in a big family, she currently lives in the desert of southern Utah with her husband and three creative kids. See more about the author and her books at her website, https://ellieterry.com/.