Book Review: Touch Blue by Cynthia Lord

Last week I was in D.C. attending the ALA conference (American Library Association) as an exhibitor for my business, PrestoStage, (my day job). While I was there I picked up a free book from the Scholastic booth. It was an ARC, as the book is not scheduled for release until August. I read most of the book on the plane trip home. It is an easy read, but I enjoyed it.

This is a delightful short book, perfect for young readers. It would probably appeal more to a girl than a boy. It is about a young girl who lives on an island off the coast of Maine. When the school board threatens to close their small island school because the number of students had dropped below the minimum, the town came up with the idea to bring in 5 foster kids to up their numbers and hopefully keep the school. Tess's family fosters a 13 year old boy, who comes loaded with an attitude and problems. It is a charming story of how Tess starts out trying to help the boy adjust because she wants the school to stay open. But eventually she grows to really care about her foster brother.

The writing was clean, almost invisible. I easily fell into the story, and I think children of all ages could do the same.

If I were to rate this book on Amazon, I would give it 4 1/2 stars.