Book picks similar to
Blessen by Margaret Simon


realistic-fiction
identity
chickens
family

Rabbit Cake


Annie Hartnett - 2017
    Twelve-year-old Elvis Babbitt has a head for the facts: she knows science proves yellow is the happiest color, she knows a healthy male giraffe weighs about 3,000 pounds, and she knows that the naked mole rat is the longest living rodent. She knows she should plan to grieve her mother, who has recently drowned while sleepwalking, for exactly eighteen months. But there are things Elvis doesn’t yet know—like how to keep her sister Lizzie from poisoning herself while sleep-eating or why her father has started wearing her mother's silk bathrobe around the house. Elvis investigates the strange circumstances of her mother's death and finds comfort, if not answers, in the people (and animals) of Freedom, Alabama.

Absolutely Normal Chaos


Sharon Creech - 1990
    Boring! Then cousin Carl Ray comes to stay with her family, and what starts out as the dull dog days of summer quickly turns into the wildest roller coaster ride of all time. A wonderful story of contemporary teen life.

The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes


Anna McPartlin - 2014
    And she knows that she's one of the lucky ones. She loves her life, ordinary as it is. And she loves the extraordinary people in it: her spirited daughter, Juliet; her colorful, unruly family; the only man in her big heart, Johnny Faye. Rabbit has big ideas, full of music and love and so much life. She has plans for the world. But the world, it turns out, has other plans for Rabbit: a devastating diagnosis. Rabbit is feisty. And with every ounce of love and strength in her, she promises that she will overcome. She will fight fight fight. She will be with those who love her for as long as she can, and she will live as long as she can with music and love and so much life. And as her friends and family rally round to celebrate Rabbit's last days, they look to her for strength, support, and her unyielding zest for life. Because she is Rabbit Hayes and she will live until she dies.

The Merit Birds


Kelley Powell - 2015
    He's angry about his absent dad, he's angry about being angry, and he's angry that he has had to give up his Ottawa basketball team to follow his mom to her new job in Vientiane, Laos. However, Cam's anger begins to melt under the Southeast Asian sun as he finds friendship with his neighbour, Somchai, and gradually falls in love with Nok, who teaches him about building merit, or karma, by doing good deeds, such as purchasing caged merit birds.Tragedy strikes and Cam finds himself falsely accused of a crime. His freedom depends on a person he's never met. A person who knows that the only way to restore his merit is to confess. The Merit Birds blends action, suspense, and humour in a far-off land where things seem so different, yet deep down are so much the same.

My Dad's a Birdman


David Almond - 2007
    It's just the two of them, and Auntie Doreen, who pops round to check Lizzie's spellings and tell Dad he's daft. But today there's something unusual going on: why is Dad building himself a pair of wings and studying the birds to see how they fly?

Song for a Whale


Lynne Kelly - 2019
    But she's the only deaf person in her school, so people often treat her like she's not very smart. If you've ever felt like no one was listening to you, then you know how hard that can be.When she learns about Blue 55, a real whale who is unable to speak to other whales, Iris understands how he must feel. Then she has an idea: she should invent a way to "sing" to him! But he's three thousand miles away. How will she play her song for him?

Rogue Dragons Complete Series Kindle Edition by Emilia Hartley (Author) Format: Kindle Edition


Emilia Hartley - 2021
    He doesn’t have time to meet new women.Evangeline’s grandfather raised her and taught her how to make a living as an artist—by inking her designs on people’s skin. He would be so proud of her for opening her own shop—and for finally dumping her abusive boyfriend. As it is, she meets him in public to demand he return her property, but when he shows up, she only escapes him dragging her into the parking lot for another beating when a giant, brooding man chases him away. Evangeline tries to thank the stranger, but he won’t even give her his name. He says he’s not sticking around town long and doesn’t want ties here.Finding the Forgotten (#2)Nobody has ever needed Dillon. But the only woman who looks at Dillon without any fear in her eyes isIsabella, the pregnant friend of a friend who is crashing at the guys’ cabin until she can get on her feet. Dillon would do anything for Isabella—absolutely anything. Even give her the time and space she needs to heal after her last relationship.If only his protective nature didn’t trigger memories that put her in a panic, a relationship with him would be perfect. For Dillon’s own good, she has to leave him. It will break her heart, but it’s the only way. Dillon deserves better.Restoring the Broken (#3)Nobody with any sense goes looking for true love in a bar, but then nobody has ever accused Erik Beck of having any sense, either. Maybe that’s why Erik spends his evenings tossing back enough alcohol to numb the monstrous dragon he inherited from his twin—the twin he starved of life when he was still in his mother’s womb.Bree Halstead just knows she and Erik are meant for each other. Someday soon, he’ll tire of taking a different woman home every night and he’ll see her—really see her—and realize how perfect they are together.And after he bites her, her opinion of him isn’t the only thing that changes. As a new world opens before Bree, her daydreams fall away, but the reality that remains is beyond anything she could have imagined. Bree is more convinced than ever that Erik is her destiny.Redeeming the Rejected (#4)Years ago, Ford lost his clan, his mate, and maybe even himself. Now, he wants to be left in peace—until he meets Daphne, and she awakens passion in him unlike any he has ever experienced—even with his late wife.He can’t have her, though. After what he did, Ford knows he can never be accepted into a clan again. It’s hard to put aside everything he wants just when he’s starting to feel again, but he can’t let Daphne suffer for his past.Daphne Albright needs a vacation, but when she’s strangely attracted to the Uber driver she calls to pick her up at the airport, that’s all the excuse she needs to take a little time to herself. Despite the short time they’ve known each other, her heart breaks when she finds out he’s had a mate before. A relationship between them seems doomed from the start, but she can’t help wanting it anyway.Tasting the Forbidden (#5)Nellie loves her small town, but ever since a rag-tag bunch of dragon shifters moved in and snapped up her friends as mates, she’s considered leaving. To make matters worse, Evangeline is pushing Nellie to let her guard down around the hot but scary clan leader, Gavin. The trouble is, Gavin won’t stop looking for her, and Nellie has used up nearly all her magic trying to avoid him. Many of her ancestors have been burned to death by dragons.Too bad he can’t convince his beast—or his heart—that that pursuing her is a lost cause.

The View on the Way Down


Rebecca Wait - 2013
    It is the story of Emma's two brothers – the one who died five years ago and the one who left home on the day of the funeral and has not returned since.It is the story of her parents – who have been keeping the truth from Emma, and each other. It is a story you will want to talk about, and one you will never forget.

Letters to the Lost


Brigid Kemmerer - 2017
    Even after her mother's death, she leaves letters at her grave. It's the only way Juliet can cope.Declan Murphy isn't the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he's trying to escape the demons of his past.When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can't resist writing back. Soon, he's opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither Declan nor Juliet knows that they're not actually strangers. When life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, sparks will fly as Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart.

A Regular Guy: Growing Up with Autism


Laura Shumaker - 2008
    It answers the many questions that people have about autism through the story of Matthew's life spanning from babyhood to young adulthood. A Regular Guy illustrates the many ways in which family, friends and strangers are touched by Matthew's desperate desire to be a regular guy, and how his brutal honesty and social awkwardness bring out the best and worst in people in touching and humorous ways. In turn, A Regular Guy leads readers to love and accept Matthew, quirks and all, and inspires them to understand and tolerate the differences in others.

Things I'm Seeing Without You


Peter Bognanni - 2017
    She can barely function after learning of Jonah’s death. Jonah, the boy she’d traded banter with over texts and heartfelt e-mails.Jonah, the first boy she'd told she loved and the first boy to say it back. Jonah, the boy whose suicide she never saw coming. Tess continues to write to Jonah, as a way of processing her grief and confusion. But for now she finds solace in perhaps the unlikeliest of ways: by helping her father with his new alternative funeral business, where his biggest client is . . . a prized racehorse?As Tess’s involvement in her father’s business grows, both find comfort in the clients they serve and in each other. But love, loss, and life are so much more complicated than Tess ever thought. Especially after she receives a message that turns her life upside down.

Right as Rain


Lindsey Stoddard - 2019
    In fact, no one does—Rain buried her secret deep, no matter how heavy it weighs on her heart.When her mom suggests moving the family from Vermont to New York City, Rain agrees to the plan. But she couldn’t have imagined how different life in the big city would be. She’s never seen so many people squished together in one place in her entire life—or felt more like an outsider. With her mom and dad fighting more than ever and the anniversary of Guthrie’s death approaching, Rain is determined to keep her family together, and her big secret close to her heart.But even Rain knows that when you bury things deep, they grow up twice as tall.Ann M. Martin, New York Times bestselling author of Rain Reign, called Just Like Jackie “a lovely story of acceptance.” Stoddard has once again crafted a pitch perfect middle grade novel worthy of being called an instant classic. Fans of Sara Pennypacker and Lisa Graff will fall in love with the pluck and warmth of Stoddard’s latest heroine and the strength that even a small heart can lend.

Walking with Miss Millie


Tamara Bundy - 2017
    Then she gets put in charge of walking her elderly neighbor’s dog. But Clarence won’t budge without Miss Millie, so Alice and Miss Millie walk him together. Strolling with Miss Millie quickly becomes the highlight of Alice’s day, as she learns about the town’s past and meets a mix of its catty and kind residents. As the two become confidantes, Alice is finally able to express her heartache over her father’s desertion; and when Miss Millie tells her family story, Alice begins to understand the shameful history of Segregation, and recognize the racism they need to fight against. Navigating the neighborhood with Miss Millie gives Alice new perspective, the wisdom to move on from her anger, and even enables her to laugh again. Tamara Bundy’s beautifully written story reminds readers that there is nothing like friendship to lighten one’s load, and make anyplace a home.

Just a Dog


Michael Gerard Bauer - 2010
    Mosely is a special dog. Not just because he's so big (he's part Great Dane.) Not just because he's all white (with one black spot under his eye and a heart shaped splotch on his chest.) Not just because he's clumsy, or because of tricks (he only knows one, and it's not very good.) He's special because he seems to know exactly what everyone in Corey's family needs, even when they don't know themselves. This is the story of Mr. Mosely, from his puppyhood to the last time he curls up on the back porch. It's the story of how sometimes a dog isn't "just a dog". Sometimes he's the glue the holds a whole family together.

When Life Gives You Mangos


Kereen Getten - 2020
    But there's nothing exotic about it to Clara. She loves eating ripe mangos off the ground, running outside in the rain with her Papa during rainy season, and going to her secret hideout with Gaynah--even though lately she's not acting like a best friend.The only thing out of the ordinary for Clara is that something happened to her memory that made her forget everything that happened last summer after a hurricane hit. Sometimes things come back to her in drips like a tap that hasn't been turned off properly. Other times her Mama fills in the blanks...only she knows those aren't her memories and it is hard feeling like she is not like everybody else.But this summer is going to be different for Clara. Everyone is buzzing with excitement over a new girl in the village who is not like other visitors. She is about to make big waves on the island--and give Clara a summer she won't forget.