  | Blossoming summer Author: Johnson, Anna Rose | |
| Price: $22.58 | ||
Summary:
When thirteen-year-old Rosemary is evacuated from WWII London to her grandmother's home in America, she uncovers a hidden family truth--that they are Anishinaabe--leading her to embrace her heritage, forge new bonds, and find beauty in unexpected places.
| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: MG Reading Level: 5.70 Points: 9.0 Quiz: 554635 |
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (06/15/25)
School Library Journal (06/20/25)
Booklist (00/07/25)
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (00/06/25)
Full Text Reviews:
Other - 04/14/2025 Thirteen-year-old Rosemary yearns to share one home with her family, which proves a tall order in England at the start of WWII. As her parents struggle to find work, Rosemary and her brothers are sent to live separately with maternal relatives. But as living conditions worsen throughout England, the family reunite and relocate to Rosemary’s father’s native Wisconsin to move in with his mother. In the U.S., Rosemary bonds with her grandmother, who reveals that their family is Anishinaabe, and that Dad’s having "made it a secret" contributed to a strained mother-son relationship. And though Rosemary grows to love her new home and learns more about her Indigenous heritage, she fears that her father and grandmother’s antagonism will force the family to leave. The sparsely detailed wartime England setting swiftly gives way to the family’s experience settling down in the States, a move that Johnson (The Luminous Life of Lucy Landry) describes with welcoming warmth and vibrancy. Rosemary’s contending with worries regarding relocation, familial tensions, and war add tenderness to this gentle historical read. Ages 8-12. Agent: Jessica Schmeidler, Golden Wheat Literary. (July) - Copyright 2025
School Library Journal - 06/20/2025 Gr 3–6—A sweet story of unity with a World War II backdrop. Thirteen-year-old Rosemary has been living with relatives for three years while her parents scrabble for work. Stuck in dreary London, Rosemary daydreams of Paradise, an idyllic home in the countryside with blooming flowers, open spaces, and her loving family beside her. As Hitler's army advances, her parents retrieve Rosemary and her two younger brothers to flee the imminent threat. They arrive in Wisconsin to live with Rosemary's estranged paternal grandmother on her vast property, a former lakeside resort. Aesthetically, Wisconsin is everything Rosemary dreamed Paradise would be, teeming with beautiful gardens. However, tensions mount between the adults, and Rosemary unexpectedly discovers she has Ojibwe and French ancestry. After learning of an upcoming gardening competition, Rosemary conspires to repair her fractured family, but she'll need everyone's cooperation to bring home a win. Readers will relate to how Rosemary struggles to meet her high expectations of herself. Her earnestness is clearly communicated via third-person narration. The inclusion of Anishinaabemowin words brings authenticity to the story, and Rosemary's urge to learn more about her background rings true. At times, the motivations of the adult characters are unclear. The story is light on dramatic action, with a gentle, somewhat plodding plot. Themes of hope and the value of collective effort cultivate a lighthearted, optimistic tone. VERDICT Calmer than a typical WWII story, this is well suited for fans of cozy historical fiction, such as Anne of Green Gables.—Hannah Grasse - Copyright 2025 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
