Three-sentence Review: What I Carry by Jennifer Longo

A three-sentence review of What I Carry by Jennifer Longo published by Random House Books for Young Readers.

Muiriel is eleven months from aging out of the foster care system and like her namesake, John Muir, she knows to pack light and to forge her own path. But a placement with Francine on Bainbrige Island, plus an internship at a nature center start to break down the walls she’s built. As the story progresses, we learn the story behind each object Muir carries and how her seventeen years as a foster child have shaped her.

Here’s the answer to one of my 85 beta reading questions.

What about this story makes it unique and would appeal to a YA audience?

YA novels about foster kids are not common and this has the unique advantage of being a YA novel about a foster kid that doesn’t focus on abuse. This book also has very memorable characters. Kira, Muiriel’s friend, is an artist and a fourth-generation island resident, but still has to deal with questions about where she is from. Sean is a perfect romantic interest and their relationship will be one YA readers will enjoy. Muiriel’s life has been hard and the defenses she’s developed make her time on Bainbridge Island more difficult than they could be, but this is a happy, hopeful book that satisfies.