Love Like Sky by Leslie C. Youngblood
A Review By: SS
"Love ain't like that."
"How is it then?" Peaches asked, turning on her stomach to face me.
"It's like sky. If you keep driving and driving, gas will run out, right?"
"That's why we gotta go to the gas station."
"Yep. But have you ever seen the sky run out? No matter how far we go?"
"No, when we look up, there it is."
"Well that's the kind of love Daddy and Mama got for us, Peaches - love like sky."
"It never ends?"
"Never."
G-baby and her younger sister, Peaches, are still getting used to their "blended-up" family. They live with Mama and Frank out in the suburbs, and they haven't seen their real daddy much since he married Millicent.
G-baby misses her best friend back in Atlanta, and is crushed that her glamorous new stepsister, Tangie, wants nothing to do with her. G-baby is so preoccupied with earning Tangie's approval that she isn't there for her own little sister when she needs her most.
Peaches gets sick - really sick. Suddenly, Mama and Daddy are arguing like they did before the divorce, and even the doctors at the hospital don't know how to help Peaches get better.
It's up to G-baby to put things right. She knows Peaches can be strong again if she can only see that their family's love for her really is like sky.
Review Notes:
Audio Book Publication Year: 2019
An installment in a Series? Yes
Narrator (s): Channie Waites
“Love Like Sky” is a superbly written story that my fifth grade students thoroughly enjoyed reading with me. This story is told from the perspective of Georgiana, affectionately known as G-baby. The readers get to see how G-baby struggles to adapt to life in her new home with her new blended family. G-baby does her best to care for her little sister, Peaches, while longing to be accepted by her new big sister, Tangie. Readers become enamored with G-baby when sudden illness strikes her baby sister and she learns who and what are most important in her life.
My students found this book very relatable because the author addressed issues many of them are familiar with, like friendship, crushes, bullying, and being forced to live with the decisions of the adults in their lives.
Readers are able to see how empathetic the various characters were throughout the story. Forgiveness and patience were also on display. The adults were understanding when mistakes were made; however, the issues were addressed and the children were disciplined in a caring manner.
This is my first novel narrated by Channie Waites and I was not disappointed. She gave a solid performance giving each character a distinct voice. That is not an easy task with various age groups and genders.
There were a lot of serious topics addressed in this book (divorce, illness, death, and bullying). Although each topic was handled with care, that may be a lot for middle grade students to read in one book; however, the narrator showed great emotion while conveying these well-written scenes.
Reading Recommendation? Yes!
Rating: NORTH STAR RATING
Content Warnings? Human or animal loss
