Arango, Andrea Beatriz. Something Like Home. 2023. 272p. Yearling, $17.99 (9780593566183) Recommended grade levels 4-6.
Rating: 5 Stars
Identities: Child in foster-kinship care
A story centered around family separation and foster-kinship care, Laura experiences an abrupt transition when after calling 911, social services take her to live with an aunt she hardly knows. Desperate to return home and to her old school, Laura refuses to unpack, self-bargains, and has difficulty building trust with new friends and adults. One day on her way home from school she finds an abandoned puppy and identifies her mission, to train the puppy to be a therapy dog so she can be reunited with her family. A beautiful middle-grade book, written in verse and through letters Laura writes to her parents who were sent to rehab. A story about the gray area of family separation and finding acceptance in the unknown. Arango writes about challenging topics that children face in a developmentally appropriate way. The utmost care for young people who have experienced a family separation is evident throughout this book. This is a great book for any middle-grade classroom library or a unit of books in verse.
Buy It! This book is one of a kind and will help pull back a layer of understanding for young people who may not have the language to name how they are feeling.
Perspectives: This book centers Laura’s voice and calls on the adults in her life to do the work necessary to understand her experience. The author writes about the gray areas and the complexities of challenging situations in a way that supports young people in normalizing that the range of emotions they have are normal. Hopefully, giving space to children in these situations to breathe into what they are feeling.
Practice: While this is a book that many students experiencing what Laura is, may feel seen in reading, students of all life experiences have and will love this book. They will extend their empathy and teachers who are looking to develop an understanding of trauma informed education will grow from reading this book.
Reviewed by María Valiente
The Adoptee Bookshelf 