The Boy on the Porch by Sharon Creech

8 and Up

Young couple, John and Marta, wake up on day to find a boy asleep on their porch. Unable to speak, the boy can’t explain his history. What kind of person would leave their child with strangers? All they know is that they have been chosen to care for this boy. As their connection to him grows, the three of them blossom into an unlikely family.

I finished this book in one day it was so good. I just wanted to know if this boy would ever say anything or if someone would show up looking for him.

In the beginning, the couple has no idea what to do with the boy. As the story goes on, they still have no idea what they’re doing but they start calling him ‘their boy.’  This book proves the power of unconditional love, that you can love a child even though they aren’t yours.

All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook by Leslie Connor

Age 8 and Up

This book tells the story of 11-year-old Perry, who was born and raised by his mom at the Blue River Co-ed Correctional Facility in tiny Surprise, Nebraska. His mom is a resident on Cell Block C, and so far Warden Daugherty has made is possible for them to be together. That is, until a new district attorney, Thomas Vanleer, discovers the truth – and Perry is removed from the facility and forced into a foster home.

When Perry moves to the “outside” world, he feels trapped. Desperate to be reunited with his mom, Perry goes on a quest for answers about her past crime.

When I read the summary for this book, my first thought was ‘how can a kid live at a jail?’ Let’s get one thing start before you read this book. The Blue River Co-Ed Correctional Facility isn’t your typical idea of a jail. When you think of jails you might think of the ones you’ve seen in cartoons or on crime films; over embellished with the inmates wearing black and white striped uniforms or fights breaking out. The jail in the book is like a G-rated version. The inmates are still locked behind bars and they have to eat with sporks but no one is trying to hurt anyone else.

The one thing I didn’t understand was that the Mom and the other inmates could work at Blue River and get a small pay. I don’t know what they are doing for work or how that all works out and I’m not even sure if that happens in real life.

Thomas Vanleer is the district attorney who comes in and ruins things for Perry and his mom. I believe the man thinks he is doing the right thing and he tries to be nice to everyone but he just comes off as being a blowhard and a jerk. The thing that really bugs me is that Vanleer seems to want immediate gratitude from Perry for getting him out of Blue River. Does he really expect a thank you for taking him from the only place he’s ever called home?

This book asks another important question, ‘What is home?’ The Vanleer guy wants Perry to think of his house as home and not the prison. But a home isn’t just a place where you’re safe from harm and have good food to eat, home isn’t home without the people you love. 

One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

For Kids and Adults Alike

Carley Connors has learned to be tough, growing up in Las Vegas with her fun-loving mother. But after a heartbreaking betrayal, Carley finds herself in foster care. When’s she’s placed with the Murphys, a lively family with three boys, she’s blindsided. Do happy families really exist? Mrs. Murphy makes her feel heard and seen for the first time. Then, just when she’s feeling like she could truly be one of the Murphys, news from her mother shakes her world.

This is one of the most nerve-wracking, mind-bending books I’ve ever read. It will make you sad, angry, and horrified all at once. I thought ‘How to Speak Dolphin’ was an emotional rollercoaster but this book is ten times more emotional.

This poor girl is put into a nice home with a kind women and she doesn’t know how to handle it. She was so used to being around a mother who would get mad at her so often she doesn’t understand why this women is being so nice to her.

This is yet another story I think all kids should read. People need to know that a parent can love a child like they are their own even when they’re not. But they also need to know that there are some adults who should never have children. Not all parents love their children and that’s pretty much the saddest thing ever.

Carley has more people being mean to her besides her mother. The older Murphy brother and a girl at school are giving her a hard time. I can understand why the boy is giving her a hard time. He thinks she’s trying to steal his mother. But the girl has no reason to give Carley a hard time. This girl just has her own family issues and is taking them out on poor Carley. That’s something I found out in a TV show once; you apparently never strike out on the thing you’re really mad at, you just take it out on someone else. So if someone makes fun of you, it’s really their problem not yours.

I’ve never understood how a parent can’t love their child. Mostly because I’m so loved. I think a parent who would purposely hurt their child is the worst kind of person ever.

This is one of those books that elementary school teachers would have children read. I remember in school how we would read a book and then dissect it, figuring out why the character is doing a particular thing.