When You Reach Me: Summary and book reviews of When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, plus links to an excerpt from When You Reach Me and a biography of Rebecca Stead.
When You Reach Me
by Rebecca Stead
Hardcover: Jul 2009,
208 pages.
Paperback: Dec 2010,
208 pages.
Four mysterious letters change Miranda's world forever.
By sixth grade, Miranda and her best friend, Sal, know how to navigate their New York City neighborhood. They know where it's safe to go, like the local grocery store, and they know whom to avoid, like the crazy guy on the corner.
But things start to unravel. Sal gets punched by a new kid for what seems like no reason, and he shuts Miranda out of his life. The apartment key that Miranda's mom keeps hidden for emergencies is stolen. And then Miranda finds a mysterious note scrawled on a tiny slip of paper:
I am coming to save your friend’s life, and my own.
I must ask two favors. First, you must write me a letter.
The notes keep coming, and Miranda slowly realizes that whoever is leaving them knows all about her, including things that have not even happened yet. Each message brings her closer to believing that only she can prevent a tragic death. Until the final note makes her think she's too late.
Winner of the 2010 Newbery Medal.
BOOK REVIEWS
BookBrowse
This is an intellectual mystery of just exactly the type I adore. It’s meaty, thought-provoking, warm, and wise. I love it. And it makes sense that I would, because it stands on the shoulders of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, a book that Miranda devours just as I did as a child... I highly recommend this book to any child who loves to ask questions or any grownup who still believes in his heart of hearts that the real world is magic. (Reviewed by Pam Watts). Full Review (1007 words).
Media Reviews
Booklist
Starred Review. [T]he mental gymnastics required of readers are invigorating; and the characters, children, and adults are honest bits of humanity no matter in what place or time their souls rest.
The Horn Book Magazine
Starred Review. Closing revelations are startling and satisfying but quietly made, their reverberations giving plenty of impetus for the reader to go back to the beginning and catch what was missed.
Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. It’s easy to imagine readers studying Miranda's story as many times as she’s read L’Engle’s, and spending hours pondering the provocative questions it raises. Ages 9–14.
School Library Journal
Starred Review. This unusual, thought-provoking mystery will appeal to several types of readers.
Kirkus Reviews
Starred Review. [W]hen all the sidewalk characters from Miranda's Manhattan world converge amid mind-blowing revelations and cunning details, teen readers will circle back to the beginning and say,'Wow ... cool".
Wall Street Jounral
Readers ... are likely to find themselves chewing over the details of this superb and intricate tale long afterward.
The New York Times
Stead piles up clues on the way to a moment of intense drama, after which it is pretty much impossible to stop reading until the last page.
The Washington Post When You Reach Me far surpasses the usual whodunit or sci-fi adventure to become an incandescent exploration of "life, death, and the beauty of it all." ...the believable characters and unexpected ending invite readers to ponder the extraordinary that underlies the ordinary in this fictional world and in their own.
Recent Reader Reviews
Rated of 5
by LA LA Book Report I have read this book for a book report and I thought it was amazing! :) It was a little bit confusing at first but after I read and re-read the book a couple of times, it definitely became one of my favorites!!
Rated of 5
by Brooke :D Clift Hanging Mystery Book! :D My Favorite! :) When you reach me by Rebecca Stead is a mystery that I recomend to everyone who loves a great mystery! You would LOVE it because at every chapter it keeps you hanging so you just want to keep reading... it hooks you and you cant put the book down!... Read More
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(1007 words).
of 5
by LA LA
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