When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
(Wendy Lamb Books, Hardcover, 9780385737425, 199pp.)
I started this book a second time before it was due at the library, then had to purchase my own copy the day I returned it. I have my own hardcover – without those fancy stickers it’s destined to receive. The writing is tight, the voice believable, and the plot impossibly clever. Ms. Stead is a genius.
But don’t take my word for it.
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Hear what everyone has been saying about
When You Reach Me… |
| “[T]een readers will circle back to the beginning and say, ‘Wow…cool.’” — Kirkus Reviews, Starred |
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Absorbing.
— People Magazine |
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Closing revelations are startling and satisfying, but quietly made.
— The Horn Book Magazine, Starred |
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“[Q]uite wonderful … [j]ust as Miranda rereads L’Engle, children will return to this.”
— Booklist, Starred |
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“This unusual, thought-provoking mystery will appeal to several types of readers.”
— School Library Journal, Starred |
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“It’s easy to imagine readers studying Miranda’s story as many times as she’s read L’Engle’s.”
— Publishers Weekly, Starred |
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“[I]t is one of the best children’s books I have ever read and books of this sort do not drop out of the sky every day.”
— Fuse 8, School Library Journal blog |
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“Rebecca Stead has created a beautifully written work … WHEN YOU REACH ME is a masterpiece, and I highly recommend it.”
— YABooksCentral.com |
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“Your younger ones will be enthralled.”
— Westchester Magazine |
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“It’s really tightly written with a story that keeps unwrapping itself.”
— Bookreporter.com |
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“It is one of my must-recommends and one of the most interesting books I’ve read all year … All I can do is say: more, Rebecca Stead; much more.”
— KidLiterate.com |
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“[A] loving tribute to the children’s classic, A Wrinkle In Time.”
— Becky’s Book Reviews |
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“When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead is a book I won’t forget for quite a long time.”
— LiterateLives.blogspot.com |
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“This book asks you to discard your habitual thoughts. Bravo!”
— Shelf Awareness |
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“[Stead] spins an original tale that straddles two worlds—the fantastic and the realistic.”
— Columbus Dispatch |
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“Readers … are likely to find themselves chewing over the details of this superb and intricate tale long afterward.”
— The Wall Street Journal |
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“I loved When You Reach Me. Such an interesting premise, and a lovely nod to Madeleine L’Engle.”
— Ginger Knowlton Vice President Curtis Brown Ltd. |
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“Great is an oft-employed adjective I’m always wary of using to describe something, but it is the right word to use to describe this book.”
— Michael Stearns, agent Firebrand Literary |
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“What could be better: a great setting, believable characters and a myustery deftly woven by a fine writer. This is a book to be reckoned with come Newbery Season.”
— BookPage |
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“An urban magician, she writes lovingly — and with keen insight … Rebecca Stead has written a beautiful and compelling novel for teens and everyone who loves them.”
— Janice Eidus, author of The War of the Rosens |
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“This book will haunt the reader. Rebecca Stead is a writer to watch!”
— Tamora Pierce, author of Bloodhound www.tamorapierce.com tammypierce.livejournal.com |
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“This book easily qualifies for the category ‘Things You Must Read.'”
— The Grand Rapids Press |
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“Easily one of the best middle-grade novels I’ve read in years … clever and fantastic.”
— Stephanie Anderson—Word Bookshop |
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“First rate characters, vivid details and a plot that defies logic, all come together to form a story that will warm your heart and exercise your mind. Brilliant.”
— Judy Hobbs—Third Place Books |
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“When You Reach Me is a multi-layered puzzle of a book that unfolds into a collection of mini-mysteries … It almost demands a re-read!”
— Shannon O’Conner—Doylestown Books |
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“When You Reach Me is an intriguing and perfectly-plotted book – probably the best book I’ve read this year.”
— Katherine Bryk—Learned Owl Bookshop |
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“It is shimmering and funny and mysterious and timeless and one of my very favorite books. Which reminds me – I am going to read it again right now!”
— Jennifer Laughran—Books Inc |
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“It was beautifully written, and so lovingly plotted … There was NOTHING I didn’t love about this book.”
— Sarah Todd—Children’s Book World |
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“I still cannot get this book out of mind!”
— Andrea Vuleta—Mrs. Nelson’s Toy and Book |
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“I know no other book about which I would say so confidently: You will read this book more than once.”
— Bobbie Fishman—Labyrinth Books |
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“This is a beautiful story of glowing intelligence … The graceful complex plot line carries readers to a dazzling wrap up and, in this reader’s experience, pure joy.”
— Francine Lucidon– The Voracious Reader |
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“A remarkably fun book.”
— Alan Liu – Youth Advisory Group, Watermark Books |
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“It was a totally delightful read.”
— Liddy Rich – Common Good Books |
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“Stead’s superbly rich writing makes this one you’ll want to share with every reader you know.”
— Angela Sherrill – 57th Street Books |
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“I loved the discussion of time travel.”
— Vicki Erwin – Main Street Books |
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“It’s so rare to get that combination of perfectly real, sweet stories and ideas that are so completely new, so imaginative.”
— Katherine Fergason – Bunch of Grapes Bookstore |
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“I LOVED it! A great tale of friendship and self-discovery.”
— Jane Hannon – Bank Square Books |
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“What a stellar journey this book is … What a fantastically intriguing drop you on your head storyline. And oh, what a sweet, sweet love story.”
— Holly Myers—Elliott Bay Books |
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“It is a book that both warms your heart and challenges your mind – one title that you know you will read more than once and love every time you do.”
— Cindy Brewer– Cardinal Lane Bookfairs |
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“It is really a wonderful book.”
— Cindy Dach—Changing Hands Bookstore |
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“The slight mix of the fantastic is perfectly weaved into the coming-of-age story … I can’t wait to have this book in store.”
— Emily Fear—Joseph-Beth Booksellers |
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“About a third of the way into the book, I started flipping to the cover just to see what other surprises were around the corner. I love this book!”
— Carter Hasegawa—Harvard Bookstore |
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“It is a book that gives me funny feelings in my stomach and makes me want to look up and shake my fist at the sky; a book that made me weep; a book that I will be thinking about for a long, long time. . . When You Reach Me will be recognized and remembered as one of the truly great children’s books of 2009.”
— Richie Partington— MLIS |
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“This is one of the very few books I have ever read when I felt at the end I wanted to go back and start all over again . . . immediately.”
— Connie Rockman, Children’s Literature Consultant |
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“I can’t put When You Reach Me down! It’s so addictive.”
— A Perrot Memorial Library Young Critic |
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“When You Reach Me is, quite simply, the best children’s novel I have read in ages. In the tradition of Ellen Raskin and E. L. Konigsburg, with a hint of Madeleine L’Engle.”
— KT Horning, Director, Cooperative Children’s Book Center |
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“It’s a book that stays with you long after you’ve finished; one that you go back to, checking a fact here and there, a situation, a thought.”
— Betty Carter, retired Children’s Literature Professor |
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“In my perfect world of the (near) future, this one will be a part of every middle school librarian’s book talk repertoire. A book this outstanding is a pleasure to recommend. Add this to your shelf as soon as possible.”
— Travis Jonker, Elementary Library/Media Specialist, Michigan |
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“Reading it aloud to the kids … caused me to appreciate what a marvelous book it is.”
— Monica Edinger, The Dalton School Educating Alice, educator blog |
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“This book is an entire mystery until the very end. It was an excellent book that kept me on the edge of my seat.”
— c17am1, a student at The Dalton School |
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“A great conversation-starter for anyone who loves to ponder the “what-ifs” in life!”
— Melissa Bernardin, First Program Librarian at Dalton School, NY, NY |
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“Stead proves herself a master storyteller, weaving plot and character development seamlessly.”
— Laura Lutz, Children’s Materials Specialist, Queens Library |
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“Extraordinary! Delightful to read and brilliantly written.”
— Susan Geye, Summer Creek Middle School Librarian, Crowley, TX |
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“I enjoyed the subtle mystery and the humanity of the characters. I found it superb.”
— Marilyn Carpenter, Professor of Education, Eastern Washington University |
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“It’s finely wrought, exquisitely plotted, and emotionally satisfying. Read it–you’ll see.”
— Leda Schubert, Vermont |
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“The best kind of science fiction rings truer to the human condition than anything merely “realistic.” Stead pulls this off with a setting that is realistic, and will engage readers across genres. The tight time-travel plot stands against the best in literature. Phenomenal.”
— Nina Lindsay, Supervising Librarian for Children’s Services, Oakland Public Library, Oakland, CA, Former Newbery Committee Chair |
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“Readers will be captivated as they read above, below, and between the lines to determine Miranda’s connection to all these things.”
— Brenda Day, Aledo Middle School Librarian, Aledo, TX |
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“I wish I could have read When You Reach Me when I was 10 or 11 or 12. It has everything I loved in a book then, and still do–friendship, romance, suspense, sadness, joy. . . all in a New York setting.”
— April Bedford, Associate Professor, University of New Orleans |
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“Rebecca Stead deftly weaves a magical story that treats its readers as intelligent thinkers. I plan to share this book with every middle level student I know!”
— Lettie K. Albright, Associate Professor of Literacy, Texas Woman’s University |
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“The character of Miranda is instantly believable, combined with an intricately crafted plot that is fantastically revealed at the conclusion. This book is destined to become a classic.”
— Sarah Hinkle, Children’s Librarian, Elmhurst Community Library |
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” Immediately buy copies for every middle school reader you know; this book is destined for greatness! … HUGELY recommended!”
— Ed Spicer, teacher and librarian |
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“The standout of the pack is Rebecca Stead’s When You Reach Meset in Manhattan in the late 1970s.”
— The Austin American-Statesman |
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“No detail is small, no character minor, in this intricately plotted novel in which the nature of time emerges as the most compelling mystery of all.”
— The Washington Post |
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“This book is lovely and almost impossibly clever: a real winner.”
— The Philadelphia Inquirer |
