This read like an award-winner that is too slow and dreamy and from an adult mindset to appeal to most kids, unfortunately. ( )

This is a pre-teen, middle school book that addresses difficult issues of mental illness, AIDS, loneliness, and hunger. After her father dies of AIDS, June Bug's mother retreats into herself and creates complicated rituals of cleanliness and isolation. When Ziggy, another kid moves in down the street, June Bug befriends him. Together, they create a magical world where they can both be happy.

This was a well written book. It addressed difficult issues in a relatable and sympathetic way. Although I felt very sad after reading the book, I think it will be an important read for younger teens. Overall, 4 out of 5 stars. ( )

This is a heartbreaking novel. Caught in her own grief and trapped by her mother's mental illness, June escapes by hiding in a tree. One day she is pulled out of the tree by the enigmatic Ziggy, who is carrying his own pain. Together June and Ziggy forge a relationship that allows them to survive their mothers' neglect and permits other people to care for them.

Some scenes in this novel verge on magical realism, which feels narratively like the only way for June to make sense of her inexplicably cruel world. It is an excellent novel for teaching empathy and compassion in a context that is quite different — yet also strangely similar — to today. Recommended for school and classroom libraries. ( )

A book that took my heart and made it hurt, an important book. Thank You Library Thing ER for sending me a copy, its one I have already recommended to a few family members and friends. ( )

It's the summer of 1983 in Newton Highlands, Massachusetts, and June Bug Jordan tiptoes around her house and escapes outside whenever possible; her father died from AIDS a few months ago, and her cellist mother Angela is terrified of germs and disease. Angela's problem began before June's father contracted AIDS, but the fact that little was known about the transmission of HIV/AIDS at that point exacerbates the issue. June's uncle Toby helps by visiting and bringing food, but it's not enough: June is always hungry, and her mother's fear of dirt translates into unhealthy "disinfectant baths" for June. June escapes outside whenever she can, and she makes a friend with Ziggy, a boy staying with his Nana Jean a few houses down. Ziggy's mom Jenny's boyfriend Donny is abusive when he drinks, so Ziggy (and his pet ferret, Matthew) is at Nana Jean's for the summer. Together, June and Ziggy travel to the Ninth Dimension, using their imaginations to create a place where they observe the beauty of the natural world and have power within it. Ziggy and June confide in each other, and when Jenny returns to Trowbridge Road in the middle of the night and finds June digging a hole to bury contaminated clothing, she brings her back to Nana Jean's, and the truth of Angela's condition is revealed.

See also: Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt (YA/adult), Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson, All the Greys on Greene Street by Laura Tucker

"You can become brave through your imagination" -author, book club, 9/24/2020

https://shelf-awareness.com/max-issue.html?issue=375#m798

Quotes (from ARC)
"I never say anything I don't mean. That's one of the many peculiar things about me that most people don't enjoy. It's unfortunate." (Ziggy to June, 55)

"The boys at my school were always saying mean things. And I never knew if they were true or not." (Ziggy to June, 68)

"And no one in the ninth dimension is ever cruel. And no one is ever alone. And everyone is brave. And you can make anything you want happen, just by wishing." (Ziggy to June, 72)

"I know it's hard, but for once I'm doing what's right for you. This is what you need."
"But no one asked me what I wanted. How can you know what I need if you never asked me what I wanted?" (Jenny and Ziggy, 129)

When I was alone with her, it was easier to pretend that things made sense....Suddenly there was another person with me. He saw things the way they really were. (172-173)

This was the first time in my life I had ever heard anyone tell the truth about who I was and where I came from.
And now I knew another truth too. A daughter can tell her story and the house can stay standing and the floor can stay whole. A daughter can tell the truth and a mother can listen....The foundation beneath their feet might shake, but it will not crumble. (250-251)

Make-believe is a kind of real magic. (277) ( )