Ways to Make Sunshine
From the winner of the Newbery Medal 2026
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- 6,49 €
Descrizione dell’editore
From New York Times-bestselling and multi-award-winning author Renée Watson comes the start of a character-driven, young middle grade series starring a black girl and her relatable and lovable family
'Without ever shying away from difficult topics such as racism and financial hardship, this is a positive, optimistic story. For readers who are going through tough or troubling times, this book will be a welcome dose of happiness' BookTrust Great Books Guide 2021
Ryan Hart and her family live in Portland, Oregon, and her dad lost his job a while ago. He finally got a new one, but it pays less, and he'll have to work nights. And so they're selling the second car and moving to an (old) new house.
The Harts are an everyfamily – a family with siblings who bicker, parents who don't always get it right, but a family that loves. A family working hard to make it in tough economic times, a family with traditions and culture, a family that tries new things. This is a black family growing up in middle class America.
And Ryan is a girl who has much on her mind – school, family, friends, self-image – but who knows how to make sunshine out of setbacks.
Packed with humour and heart alongside meaningful and thoughtful moments, Ryan Hart is the character everyone will want to be best friends with.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this series opener, a loose reimagining of Ramona Quimby's exploits, Watson (Some Places More Than Others) adroitly captures the uncertainty of growing up amid change through the eyes of an irrepressible black girl. Fourth grader Ryan Hart's name means "king," and her parents encourage her to live up to it ("Dad is always telling me our people come from royalty... their strength is running through my veins"). Ryan tries her best, but it's hard sometimes, as when classmates tease her about having "a boy's name" and when her father loses his job, precipitating the family's move to a smaller, "not new at all" home. Despite the changed circumstances, Ryan brings optimism to everything she does: racing bikes against her "bossy and nosy" big brother, facing her fear of public speaking, and serving as her mother's sous chef. In vignette-style chapters, Watson warmly weaves together slice-of-life moments that capture youthful doubt alongside moments of loss and joy, showing a tight-knit family navigating difficulties with plenty of courage and plenty of love. Occasional illustrations by Mata (She's Got This) emphasize the story's joyful realism. Ages 7 10.
