My Year in the Middle

My Year in the Middle is a fiction novel by Lila Quintero Weaver.  The novel is about 270 pages long, but is very fast paced.  With very short chapters (usually 4 -6 pages each), the story moves along quickly to cover part of Lu, the main character's, year in sixth grade.  While it is a fictional story, there are significant elements of historical fiction that could put this novel in both genres.  The author draws on her own experiences of growing up in the south in the 1970s, but has also done significant research for the events that take place in the novel to allow the reader to experience life in Alabama during the time of civil rights.

Lu Olivero is growing up in Red Grove, Alabama during the civil rights movement.  Her school has just integrated, but that's just on paper.  In each classroom, white kids are assigned to sit on one side of the room and black kids are assigned to sit on the other.  Lu is assigned to sit in the middle of the room because she and her family are from Argentina, so she technically does not "fit" into either side.  The town has become fixated on the upcoming election, where Governor Albert Brewer is up for reelection against former governor George Wallace.  The close race between the two men seems to fuel the racial tensions in the small Alabama city, which is also bleeding into Lu's school and friendships.  When Lu and her classmates start preparing for the upcoming Field Day, Lu learns she has a talent and passion for running.  She and another classmate, Belinda, find themselves in competition with one another daily in P.E. class.  The two decide to begin running together on the weekends and a friendship blossoms.  The problem is that Belinda is black, and suddenly Lu is being shunned and mocked for her friendship with Belinda and finds herself ostracized from her white friends at school. While Lu's best friend, Abigail, doesn't see a problem with Lu's new friend, she also isn't standing up for Lu or Belinda either.  Lu does not understand why everyone cannot look past skin color to see the person inside.  As the book goes on, many of Lu's friendships are put to the test and Lu begins to see who her true friends are as she has to decide for herself how she feels about the events that are taking place in her town.

I chose this book as my first read for the summer because of what is going on in our country.  There were lots of events in this book that mimic some of the events going on in our country today - racial equality, protests, and even an election year.  I would strongly recommend this book to upper elementary and middle school kids that are grappling with what is happening in our world today.  While this book does lend itself more to female readers because of a female narrator and Lu's own struggle with seeking gender equality from her mother's Argentine culture, I do think this book is a great way to lead into some good discussions at home about the things we are seeing in our world today.  Throughout the book Lu has to make many decisions about who she is and what she stands for.  Through many racial comments from friends and even other adults in her life, Lu has to decide if she will stand up for what she believes in and for her new friend, Belinda, and just how to do that.  I think My Year in the Middle shows how even the seemingly smallest of actions can have a big impact on others around us.