CHasing Normal

 

Publisher: Hyperion

Category: Humor

Ages: 9-12

Mieka Baker just wants to be normal. It’s tough enough that her mom just up and left a few years ago, leaving Mieka with her artist dad, who decorates the house solely with “treasures” from the “vintage” store (“Salvation Armani,” anyone?); but it’s just too much when Mieka and her dad have to leave Boston to spend the summer with her sick grandmother in Texas.

Grandma Baker isn’t just brutally honest, she’s brutal. But Mieka can handle being called fat and frumpy by her grandmother. What she can’t seem to do is fit in with her Texan relatives—the most normal family ever. Aunt Kate stays at home with the kids; Uncle Dave wears a suit to work; cousin Mark is a genius; and Greta—well, she’s Mieka’s age, but that’s where the similarity ends. She’s blond, beautiful, fit, friendly, popular, and practically perfect.

Mieka loves her dad, and she wants to love her relatives. But more and more it seems like no matter what she does, she’s destined to be chasing normal for the rest of her life.

From KIRKUS

Papademetriou hits all the big issues in a typical tween girl’s life: concerns about weight and appearance, family relationships good and bad, changing friendships, religion, money (and the lack of same), a summer crush and even the extreme embarrassment of one’s first period occurring in a very public setting. Mieka, 12, bears up well but remains believably conflicted as she copes with all of these during a three-week visit to Houston to visit her seriously ill grandmother and apparently perfect uncle, aunt and cousins. That her grandmother is downright unpleasant and remains so throughout is just one indication of the emotional truth and complexity underlying the text. As Mieka discovers her artistic talent, learns about religion at the camp her father once attended and gets to know her cousin Greta, she develops the confidence to assert her own values. Readers may not actively notice Papademetriou’s skill and sensitivity in keeping the plot moving, the characters real and the message muted, but they will definitely appreciate it. Realistic and upbeat. (Fiction. 9-12)

From BOOKLIST

When her grandmother falls ill, 12-year-old Mieka and her single father spend the summer in Houston with her aunt’s family. Mieka welcomes the opportunity to leave Boston, where her best friend recently ditched her, but dreams of a pleasant family gathering wash away when they arrive: Grandma Baker is mean, and the secular, bohemian lifestyle of Mieka and her artist father contrasts sharply with that of their wealthy relatives. Though Mieka and her cousin Greta become friends, and Mieka almost enjoys tagging along to Bible camp, she can’t help wishing she were as pretty and popular as Greta. As summer continues, Mieka lives through typical pre-teen traumas—a few embarrassing moments, a harmless crush, a fight with Greta—all of which teach her that she and her dad are fine the way they are. By the author of Sixth Grade Glommers, Norks, and Me (2005), this novel doesn’t break any new ground, but it is solid fare for readers looking for a family-centered story and a protagonist who is smart, funny, and instantly recognizable. (Krista Hutley)