July 3rd, 2012 from Bloomsbury
After she’s hit by lightning at a wedding, twelve-year-old Lilah Bloom develops a new talent: she can hear dead people. Among them, there’s her overopinionated Bubby Dora; a prissy fashion designer; and an approval-seeking clown who livens up a séance. With Bubby Dora leading the way, these and other sweetly imperfect ghosts haunt Lilah through seventh grade, and help her face her one big fear: talking to—and possibly going to the seventh-grade dance with—her crush, Andrew Finkel.
Liliah can hear dead people, but this really isn't a ghost story. This is a story about a girl trying to get through those rough middle school years who just happens to get some pretty excellent advice from dead people. Namely, her grandmother and a once uber famous fashion designer. What I wouldn't do to talk to my grandmothers again! Lilah goes through the normal ups and downs of 7th grade - snotty girls & cute boys -and in my opinion, she is one lucky girl to have her ghost sidekicks. They are witty, smart, and truly want the best for Lilah and her father. This is just a good ole fashion coming of age story with a twist.
For me, Small Medium at Large is a stand out MG for 2012. I loved the interactions between Lilah and her grandmother and I especially loved the relationship between Lilah's father and grandmother. Even beyond the grave she loves her son (Lilah's father). It's great to read about positive grand/parent relationships for young readers. So often the parents come off as stupid or out of touch, but not in this case. The relationships are what make this story special. This would be a fun book for parents and teens to read together - highly recommend!
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You can find Levy at her website
