  | Museum of lost and found Author: Sales, Leila | |
| Price: $23.28 | ||
Summary:
When eleven-year-old Vanessa discovers an abandoned museum, she starts filling it with her own projects and art and memories, thinking maybe, if she can put them all together in just the right way, she can finally understand why she and her relationships are the way they are.
| Illustrator: | Li, Jacqueline |
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (03/15/23)
School Library Journal (+) (07/01/23)
Booklist (05/01/23)
The Hornbook (00/05/23)
Full Text Reviews:
Booklist - 05/01/2023 Sixth grade has been confusing. Vanessa’s best friend, Bailey, has grown distant, and when Vanessa learns that she wasn’t invited to Bailey’s birthday party, it seems their relationship is officially over. Thankfully, Vanessa makes a happier discovery, too: an abandoned museum at a nearby park, complete with a mysteriously abandoned painting. She puts together an exhibit about her floundering friendship, hoping to decipher why it ended, and soon other kids including her older brother and an unusual boy from her Hebrew school, join her in creating their own displays. News of the imminent building demolition sets Vanessa in a race against time to try to save the museum—and possibly her friendship with Bailey—in the process. It’s an intriguing premise, and the tone is delightfully conversational, even when tackling topics of shifting friendships, body-focused repetitive behavior, and having an active-duty parent overseas. Discussions of relationships are nuanced and thoughtful, and the book ends on a realistic but hopeful note. A creative and compassionate examination of friendship in all forms. - Copyright 2023 Booklist.
School Library Journal - 07/01/2023 Gr 3–7—Vanessa is an 11-year-old Jewish middle grade student from Ohio with an absent military father and a mother who works all the time. She and Bailey are best friends but are beginning to drift apart. As Vanessa is out exploring one day, she stumbles upon an abandoned museum and decides to make an exhibit showcasing her friendship with Bailey. Slowly Vanessa starts to see that friendship in a new light. This book is geared towards middle grades but has wide appeal for its relatable themes. Readers will witness Vanessa deal with her dwindling friendship as she changes each exhibit, a creative way to express how relationships are affected as friends grow and change. Many readers will see themselves in Vanessa as she matures and deals with life issues; the process of watching her make new friends is heartwarming and relatable for anyone in middle school. Readers will learn to value memories of the past, but also to look forward to what is to come. VERDICT This is an outstanding book for its unique and wonderful approach to relatable themes surrounding the notion of coming of age.—Maeve Dodds - Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
