Carry Me Home: Contemporary Middle Grade Novel
Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
August 2021 / ISBN: 978-1-534-48508-2 / Ages 8-12
Softcover $8.99
Check your favorite bookseller, and if you want it signed, be sure to order with instructions from Country Bookshelf in Bozeman, MT.
Two sisters struggle to keep their father’s disappearance a secret in this tender middle grade novel that’s perfect for fans of Katherine Applegate and Lynda Mullaly Hunt.
Twelve-year-old Lulu and her younger sister, Serena, have a secret. As Daddy always says, “it’s best if we keep it to ourselves,” and so they have. But hiding your past is one thing. Hiding where you live—and that your Daddy has gone missing—is harder.
At first Lulu isn’t worried. Daddy has gone away once before and he came back. But as the days add up, with no sign of Daddy, Lulu struggles to take care of all the responsibilities they used to manage as a family.
Lulu knows that all it takes is one slip-up for their secret to come spilling out, for Lulu and Serena to be separated, and for all the good things that have been happening in school to be lost.
But family is all around us, and Lulu must learn to trust her new friends and community to save those she loves and to finally find her true home.
Watch the trailer for Carry Me Home:
Final nominee for the 2023-2024 Truman Award from the Missouri Association of School Librarians
Finalist, Children’s Fiction & Nonfiction, Women Writing the West Willa Award 2022
Shortlisted for Reading the West Book Awards 2022, Mountains & Plains Independent Booksellers Association
Finalist: Texas Institute of Letters Deirdre Siobhan FlynnBass Award for Best Middle Grade Book 2021
Bank Street Best Book 2022
Selected for the 2022-2023 Florida Sunshine State Young Readers Award Master List, Grades 3-5
Selected for the 2022-2023 Maine Student Book Award List.
“A poignant and powerful reminder that homelessness is not hopelessness.” —Kirby Larson, author of Newbery Honor book Hattie Big Sky
“A beautiful, haunting story that sucks you in and doesn’t let go. It’s a poignant reminder of the strength kids can possess when they realize they’re the only one holding their world together. I devoured it, breathlessly, and it carried my heart away with it.” -Ann Braden, The Benefits of Being An Octopus
-Martha Brockenbrough, The Game of Love and Death; I Am An American: The Wong Kim Ark Story; Into The Bloodred Woods
“Fox offers a message via Jack when he learns about Lulu’s life: “No one should have to live in a car.” Cranes—paper ones that Lulu and Selena fold, inspired by both the story of Hiroshima survivor Sadako Sasaki and the sandhill cranes migration—represent wishes granted and a kind of grace, leading to a satisfying, redemptive conclusion nicely pitched to a young audience.” -Kirkus
“Fox’s moving story is told in flashes of the “Now,” “Before,” and “Way Before,” slowly and affectingly filling in the family’s history, as well as a detailed explanation of their situation. A reassuring but realistic ending encourages readers to ask for help when needed and emphasizes that there is always someone who will care. A compassionate and empathetic examination of being unhoused.” – Booklist
“Fox gently depicts the way Lulu manages their basic needs while balancing the difficulties (and joys) of navigating a new school and finding her way in the world. With accessible prose, brisk pacing and well-developed characters, Fox’s empathetic novel encourages readers to understand how people experiencing homelessness are individuals with stories and, like everyone, deserve compassion and support.” – Bookpage
“This is a moving story of a determined girl facing homelessness with courage.” – Imagination Soup