English & Creole
MG
SEL
Family
Friendship
New Schools
Forest Fires
Racism
Tanita S. Davis
Cover Art: Geneva Bowers
summary
From Tanita S. Davis of Serena Says (which has a melodramatic and lovely narrator) comes Madalyn from Partly Cloudy. Madalyn really loves naps, and I appreciate that personality quirk. She’s moved in with her Great Uncle, Papa Lobo, after an extremely miserable year at her previous school. Madalyn is hoping that this new school 3 hours away will be better, and she’ll make some friends after her BFF moved several states away.
Things seem ok at first, even though she’s the only Black girl in her class. Madalyn’s mom encourages her to have tough conversations with people who might be friends. Did someone’s caregiver say not to be friends with her? Is it because she’s Black? Papa Lobo speaks Creole, and Madalyn knows Spanish…where is Madalyn really from anyway?
I’m doing my best not to give any spoilers, but Davis has created a beautifully complex plot that can help anyone have tough conversations (especially about racism). As a white person, I can tell you that we’re not taught about our privilege in the way we need to be (or at all as a young person, quite frankly). But Davis’ book can provide some insights into strategies and the thought process behind working up the courage to act kindly to everyone (even if they aren’t very nice).
This book was kindly sent by Harper Kids, but all opinions are my own. Partly Cloudy is out now!
Tanita S. Davis
Tanita S. Davis is an asocial hermit who feels really weird talking about herself in the third person, and honestly would rather be somewhere reading a book, but oh, well.
Most bios are like a really intense game of two truths and a lie, so Tanita invites you to consider which is which: Tanita holds a Master of Fine Arts from Mills College. She fed her love for traveling when she moved to Glasgow, Scotland, in 2007. She now lives in Northern Arizona in a yurt, and makes cheese.
Tanita serves on the board of The Children’s and Young Adult Bloggers’ Literary Awards, better known as The Cybils. Her short fiction can be found in Hunger Mountain and Cicada magazines.
Her occasional truths, frequent lies, and very random observations can be found on twitter @tanita_s_davis
*This bio is perpetually under construction.*
