I'm calling this historical fiction because it does an excellent job of showing how so many kids in the 1980s didn't know anything about the LGBTQ community or HIV/AIDS or how racism really operates. It was pretty easy for our parents to keep us in the dark because we didn't have the internet and American culture at the time was complicit in pretending these things didn't exist or that kids shouldn't know about them. (Obviously, there are still sub-cultures in the US that continue to work very hard to keep kids in the dark, but most kids now have much more access to information.)

Anyway, I loved this book so much. I'm just going to list some things I appreciated about it:

Every character felt real enough to touch.

I am already/always a big fan of the How I Spent My Summer Vacation genre. The serial killer search gave the plot momentum, but summer books have a natural narrative arc because we know that summer can't last forever.

I loved the Venice Beach setting. I've been to Venice once and it brought it back to my mind vividly.

Thematically this book is super relevant to the 2020s without putting anachronistic words into the mouths of 1980s characters. Again, what was so powerful to me about this book was the way it shows both how much things have changed and how they're still the same. Kids are more knowledgeable and empowered now, but I think they will still empathize with Bug's desire to know more and to show that she deserves to know more.

So this book just jumped to my #1 Newbery hope for 2022. My only hesitation is that I don't think Gayle Forman is LGBTQ or Latinx, which isn't part of the Newbery criteria, but still weighs on my mind when I think about representation. The POV character is a cis white-passing girl, but the experiences of her brother (who is Latino) and her LGBTQ friends are a huge part of the book. ( )

Bug feels like her brother's need for "space" is going to for sure ruin her summer. She wants to spend the summer at Venice Beach, not at crummy camp or staying with her neighbors. When Frankie comes to visit his uncle for the summer, she assumes he's been brought to keep her company. Bug learns a lot over this summer. She's curious, accepting, and learns that the world isn't the black and white place she thought it was and there are shades of gray.
Frankie and Bug start investigating the Midnight Marauder together. Eventually Frankie shares some of his reality about life in Ohio and his trans identity, even if he doesn't have a name for it yet. When Frankie's Uncle Phillip is hospitalized after he's attacked, the two switch the focus of their investigation. They discover the reason he was beaten wasn't because he was mugged as they are told at first, but because he's attacked for being gay. It's 1987 and the AIDs epidemic is happening.
A slow start, this book turned into this touching story of love, acceptance, allyship, and quest for justice & change. ( )

Recommended Ages: Gr. 4-8

Plot Summary: Bug is devastated when her brother chooses to stop taking her to the beach every day this summer. Instead, she thinks she's going to need to go back to the awful camp at the Y. Instead, her neighbor has his nephew, Frankie, come for the summer . Bug thinks he's there to keep her company and keep her away from camp but Bug's dreams of making a new friend seem unlikely. Frankie hates the water and spends all his time trying to piece together some clues about the Midnight Marauder who has been murdering people in yellow houses all around the area. But nothing is as it seems -- Frankie has a big secret, Phillip never told Bug something important about himself, and Bug is annoyed that her mom won't tell her more about their move to California.

Setting: Venice, CA, 1980s? 1990s?

Characters:
Bug Contreras - AKA Beatrice, 10 yo,
Daniel Contreras - 14 yo, half Salvadoran and proud of it, has darker skin than Bug
Mama - works at the Mayor's office and knows everything that is happening in the news, wanted to be a reporter but needed the extra money the Mayor's office was offering
Dad - Bug's dad was Salvadoran, fought for farmers rights, was killed in car crash before Bug was born
Hedwig - landlady, part of Bug's "family"
Phillip - lives in the apartment upstairs, piano tutor, part of Bug's "family", gay
Frankie - from Ohio, staying with his Uncle Phillip for the summer even though they've never met
Aunt Teri - Mama's sister, from Colorado?, stays with Bug and family after Phillip was beat up

Recurring Themes: city, urban, exercise, friendship, growing up, siblings, family, family you make, LA and Hollywood, race, racism, LGBTQIA, prejudice, murder, investigation, friendship, ocean, swimming, independence

Controversial Issues:
p32 - She knew Mama needed to be "one degree below hell" before she'd get in the cold water

Personal Thoughts: Covering many intense topics (murder mystery, racism, prejudice against LGBTQ), this book is wholly appropriate for upper elementary. Every character is well developed. The author shows instead of tells. Highly recommend.

Genre: realistic fiction

Pacing: medium, mostly character development but the murderer being on the loose is suspenseful
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Activity: ( )

I loved this story…the fact that it takes place in the 80s and shines a light on violence against the LGBTQ community, fear of the unknown with the AIDS epidemic and identity is a book ahead of its time. I wish there was a book like this when I was growing up in the 80s. The author touches on finding one’s identity, acceptance, friendship and family.

It’s 1987 and Bug’s life is about to change. Every summer Bug gets to hang out with her big brother, Danny, at the beach in Venice where they live. But not this summer. This summer Danny wants to be called Daniel, lift weights and hang out with his own friends at Muscle Beach. Bug is stuck at home most of the time until Frankie comes to visit their neighbor, who is his gay uncle. Frankie and Bug do not hit it off right away. The only thing they seem to have in common is their search of the Midnight Marauder, a serial killer who is on the loose. Through this shared interest Bug and Frankie grow close enough for Frankie to share his secret: he wasn’t born a male and his family sent him to California from Ohio for the summer to “get it out of his system”. This MG book explores what it’s like to not be able to share who you are with the world. ( )

Frankie and Bug presents a realistic look at the innocent acceptance kids have towards others .

Set in 1987, Bug lives with her mom and brother. Daniel (formerly known as Danny) is growing up and wants to have more freedom, so Bug won't be going to the beach every day with her brother but will attend camp. After convincing her mother that she absolutely does NOT want to attend camp, she proposes hanging with the other adults in the apartment building while her mom works at the mayor's office during the day. They live in Venice, California, right on the beach. Money definitely matters, as mom supports the family on her city government job. Bug's dad died before she was born. Philip, mom's best friend, agrees to keep his nephew for the summer, which is the perfect solution for Bug. She will have a playmate. Frankie arrives. Frankie knows everything about the series killer who has been killing in the nearby towns, telling Bug they should solve the mystery.

The novel goes through the summer as Bug gets to know Frankie. She even gets to the beach a couple now times. It's a summer of discovery, discovering how good some people are and how cruel other people are. As they don't live in the. nicest area, there is a gang of kids who like to accost other, even beating them. Of course, there's the series killer as well. Bug's innocence allows her to enjoy people for who they are, but she finds out several truths about her friends and family that make her grow up and make her see that how people treat one another is important.

In the end, it's a sweet novel. I found it a bit didactic. I prefer a story to speak for itself as opposed to be told what the lesson is. It's a perfectly fine, appropriate book for middle school. It does deal with issues that some people prefer to say doesn't exist, so be aware that the topics are real world and real life. ( )