The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones

May 15, 2020
An unlikely friendship emerges between an angry boy and a girl whose outlook rivals Pollyanna's. Rising 10th grader Ethan Charlie Harper can't believe his white father sent him from Arcadia, Washington, to Ellison, Alabama, to spend the summer with his paternal aunt, Cara, and her husband, Robert, to punish him for hitting a white boy in school who called Ethan a half-breed and his mother the N-word. In 1955, blacks aren't welcome in lily-white Ellison, but Ethan's divorced, single father seems unconcerned. While Ethan is tending his uncle's malt shop, Juniper Jones, a loquacious, redheaded, blue-eyed tornado of a girl, barges into the shop and entices Ethan to become her summer adventure buddy. Talkative as Anne of Green Gables and imaginative as Bridge to Terabithia's Leslie, Juniper breathes life into Ethan's hot, dreary days and helps him process his anger and resentment toward his parents. She is an appealing, well-drawn character who steals the show. When Ethan hits another white bully, the plot turns deadly. Set in the year of Emmett Till's murder, this story portrays a close and visible friendship between a white girl and a black boy that would not likely have been possible or tolerated in Alabama. Any reader who knows this history will read with trepidation, anticipating tragedy in every chapter. Masquerades as historical fiction, but given its ahistorical plot, one would do well to read it as fantasy. (Fiction. 12-18)

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Starred review from May 1, 2020

Gr 7-10-After getting in trouble for punching a bullying classmate, Ethan, 14, is sent to the small town of Ellison, AL, to stay with his Aunt Clara and Uncle Rob. It is the summer of 1955, and Ethan, whose father is white and mother is Black, grew up in the relatively integrated town of Arcadia, WA, and has never experienced the racism and segregation of the Jim Crow South. Not long after his arrival, he meets Juniper Jones, a flame-haired free spirit (think Anne of Green Gables meets Stargirl) who immediately declares them friends and starts to plan the "invincible" adventures they'll have. What follows is a sweet, heartwarming account of two friends discovering the innocent pleasures of summer shenanigans: They roll down the steepest hill, climb the tallest tree, and have picnics in the middle of the lake. Despite their budding friendship, the reality of Ethan's life in the Deep South lurks just outside of their pleasant bubble as small-town racists and a trip to the segregated city of Montgomery jolt him to his core. Striking a lovely balance between exuberant joy and piercing heartbreak, this story will make an impact with many readers. Juniper is a somewhat familiar character type, but the sensitive, well-drawn portrayal of Ethan stands out. His delicate shifting from anger to love to resentment to confusion will linger after reading. The writing is clear and evocative, bringing to life the lush countryside of Alabama in full summer and never veering into melodrama, despite the book's high emotional content. VERDICT A gorgeous, memorable story that deserves a place on both school and public library shelves. -Kristy Pasquariello, Westwood Public Library, MA

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2020
Grades 7-10 Ethan Harper is a biracial teenager forced to spend the summer of 1955 with his white aunt and uncle in Ellison, Alabama, after getting in a fight at school. After he arrives, Ethan learns the hard way that people who look like him are not welcome in town. He resigns himself to boredom in his uncle's malt shop until he meets Juniper Jones, the town misfit. Described as, in equal parts, a gift and a natural disaster, Juniper befriends Ethan, and they set out to have what she calls an invincible summer. Their days are spent seeking the good in a town filled with hate, until a tragic event changes their lives forever. In this story set during the early years of the civil rights movement, McQueen weaves a heartfelt narrative that examines friendship, otherness, and forgiveness. Though some of the plot seems far-fetched, the strength of this book lies in the relationship between Ethan and Juniper. Recommended for readers mature enough for narratives that contain some of the more violent elements of the civil rights movement.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)