Letters from Rapunzel

by Sara Lewis Holmes

Once upon a time, there was a girl. Let's call her Rapunzel. A modern-day version. Abandoned. Alone. Waiting for her hair to grow and dreaming of a way to escape from her tower. She was trapped, you see. Not in the conventional fairy-tale way—this was the dreaded after-school Homework Club. A desolate place, where no gum could be chewed, and where Rapunzel sat day after day, cursing the evil spell that had been cast over her father. The doctors called it something else, but a true heroine can smell an evil spell a mile away. So when a mysterious letter addressed to P.O. Box #5667 falls into her hands, she knows she's found the pea under her mattress. But since when is finding happily ever after as simple as Just Writing Back? Winner of the Ursula Nordstrom Fiction Contest, Sara Lewis Holmes's enchanting debut novel is a breath of fresh air. Told through letters, with a liberal sprinkling of fairy dust, Rapunzel's quest for a happy ending gives every reader something to believe in.

Genres: Middle Grade, Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Fairy Tales, Fiction, Juvenile, Mental Health

192 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2007

About the author

Sara Lewis Holmes is the author of The Wolf Hour, which brings together a wolf, three pigs, a witch, and a headstrong girl in a story, and Stories, you've never seen before but will recognize deep within. It's gorgeously written, fiendishly clever, and full of heart to balance out its brain -- a perfect middle-grade read for fans of fairy tales and fierce storytelling.

Sara is also the author of Operation Yes, which ALA's Booklist called "purest stagecraft: quick, funny, sad, full of heart, and irresistibly absorbing." It was also named as one of Booklist's Top Ten Arts Books for Kids 2009.

Operation Yes was a Cybils finalist in the Middle Grade Fiction category and the audio version won a 2010 Audie award for the best audiobook for kids, ages 8-12. Listen to an excerpt here.

The Provo Library Review says:

Operation Yes is filled with riches: caring, loving parents, a multileveled portrait of what it is like to live in a military family, sympathetic and well-developed characters, sorrows, laughter, growing up, and thousands of LGMs (you'll see). Contemporary realistic juvenile fiction of the highest order.

Sara is also the author of Letters From Rapunzel (HarperCollins) which won the Ursula Nordstrom Fiction prize.

Author photo by Sonya Sones, 2010

Reviews

[Marwa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is really good bc I say so. I read it a long time ago and just reread it bc I was feeling nostalgic. It is definitely a middle grade book but it is cute and silly and very touching at times.

[Tanita Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was really good - Sara's poetic sense comes through in the dialogue. I'm happy to be able to pass this one on with no qualms to younger sibs, as it tells a story of a difficult thing in a way that is understandable without being This Is A Problem Novel kind of After-School Special kind of way. And it's also funny.

[Zeynab · Rating 2 out of 5]

کتاب خوبی بود، به مسئله خوبی هم پرداخته بود و ارزش یک‌بار خواندن رو داشت.

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rapunzel (not her real name, as she quickly reveals) is writing to the mysterious owner of Post Office Box 5667. She knows of his–her?-existence only through a portion of a letter addressed by her father to that box number. Her father is under an Evil Spell, and she is reaching out to #5667, as she affectionately calls her correspondent. Her letters are wildly entertaining and sorrowful at the same time, as she struggles to find help for her father. The Evil Spell is something called Clinical Depression. She never receives any response from her correspondent, and temporarily thinks of quitting writing, but finds that the act of writing in itself is somehow helping her.

Rapunzel is an intriguing heroine. She’s passed a test to show whether she is gifted with flying colours, but mulishly resists participating in the Gifted and Talented Program until she is forced to do so. For her regular classwork, she puts her own unique twists on the assignments. When asked, for example, to write about the most influential person of the last millennium, she decides instead to look ahead to the most influential people of this millennium:

RENOWNED PSYCHIC TELLS ALL!!!

THE MYSTICAL AND MARVELOUS

MADAME REEPUNZEEL PREDICTS WHO WILL BE

THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE OF THIS MILLENNIUM!!!!!

1. The person who discovers alien life and/or communicates with alien life for the first time. Hello, Universe!
2. The person who discovers how to tap into the 90 percent of our brains that we don’t use. What in the heck have we got all those brain cells for?
3. The person who invents a way to eat chocolate even when you’re in Homework Club and the Witch is staring right at you.
4. The first female U.S. president–don’t you think it’s about time????
5. The person who discovers the secret of why teachers assign homework on weekends. And makes them stop!
6. The person who discovers how time works, who explains why I get a queasy feeling in the pit of my stomach whenever I try to imagine eternity.
7. The person who discovers how dolphins think, who understands the intelligence of animals.
8. The person who revolutionizes the way we humans learn. Maybe this person discovers how to link our minds so that we don’t all have the same body of knowledge, but can share as needed, like a hive. There’s so much stuff to know; we can’t go on each holding all of it inside ourselves.
9. The person who discovers how dreaming works–why we have good dreams and horrible ones, why everything seems to make sense while we’re in them and no sense at all once we’re not.
10. The person who figures out how to undo Evil Spells.

You can’t go wrong with this book.

[Jaleh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes, this book is realistic contemporary fiction not fantasy, but I loved how the narrator, who refers to herself as Rapunzel, uses fairy tales to help cope with her father's current round of hospitalization for his clinical depression. Having known people who have depression to varying degrees, I'd say her descriptions of it are pretty spot on.

Not long after her father had to go to the hospital, Rapunzel (aka Cadence) finds part of a letter her father had been going to mail to a mysterious person. She doesn't know who it is, only a PO Box number, but from what the letter said, he relied on this person for stability and inspiration. So in hopes that this person can help break the Evil Spell (as she calls the clinical depression) on her father. And so begins a long chain of letters. At one point she almost stops writing when she gets no response, but the act of writing helps her cope with her father's absence and pressures from her middle school teachers to improve her grades and join the Gifted Program, so she continues writing the letters anyway.

Even though I've seen some criticism for the childishness Rapunzel sometimes comes across with, that's not outside the sort of traits that can go along with being exceptionally gifted. She doesn't have strong social skills, being sort of a loner, but by the end, she finally begins to connect to those around her which which I think improved her emotional age. Besides, having so much going on inside does actually hamper your mental voice and inner maturity.

I think this was wonderfully written in style and characterization. Coping with a family member who has a mental illness can be difficult, and I think this would help even kids who don't know what it's like be able to understand this. Cadence's realization about C.D. makes complete sense. "I think that's what the Evil Spell does--it keeps you from seeing anything but the walls of your tower." And the letter her father finally writes to her from the hospital paints his condition even clearer. Over all, Rapunzel rescued herself, and even though she couldn't break the Evil Spell, she understood the nature of it better. Beautifully written.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Books have a way of finding me, it's scary. I get obsessed with a title and then find out why after. Now I know why this book was begging me to read it. It looks like a book for kids but it's actually rather heavy. I could like it better but least to say, I liked it. My favorite part was the twist.

[Santeelah Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

highly disappointed the dad wasn’t sending letters to another woman (sometimes i love angst what can i say) but was still a quick fun read!

[Danica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It's a series of letters a young girl, calling herself Rapunzel, writes to an unknown person she hopes can help her rescue her father from the "evil spell" of Clinical Depression.
It was real, yet whimsical. Serious, but silly. The relationship between father and daughter is adorable, and the daughter's imagination is charming and delightful.

[Kareninsacramento · Rating 5 out of 5]

Combining humor and the seriousness of understanding a parent with severe depression, this story is told in a series of letters from an 12-year-old sent to a mysterious friend of her father's whom she hopes can help save her father from the effects of depression's recurring Evil Spell.

The girl, who signs her name 'Rapunzel,' also deals with some of the typical problems of gifted children: often bored in school, she has a tendency to think too far 'outside the box' for her teachers' liking. For science homework that asks students to think of 10 simple and complex machines that could be used to get Rapunzel out of her tower, the girl reasons that the instructions don't say Rapunzel has to leave the tower alive. Hence, answer #1: Use a giant lever to pry her out. Prepare for the funeral.

The longer her father is absent, the more several other parts of the narrator's life unravel. She's stuck in the afterschool Homework Club (i.e., the cafeteria, as policed by an unfriendly teacher) and being pressured to join a special program for gifted students, which she's sure will be full of weirdos. Meanwhile, she has yet to find out the reasons for her father's problems and why he still hasn't come back home.

Readers of all ages will enjoy the snark and surrounding detail in this story. This is a terrific first effort from an author who writes with all the structure and assurance of a pro.

[Lauren · Rating 2 out of 5]

A few chapters into this book, I realized my childhood self would have absolutely hated this book. As a child, I was outright suspicious (and usually hostile) to books that appeared “cool” but were really “very special episode” lessons in disguise. This book is a great example of that genre: A young girl under the alias of Rapunzel writes letters to a mysterious post office box after her father falls prey to an “evil spell” (depression). On the one hand, I understand the need for a children’s book that deals with depression. But this book didn’t work for me. As a character, Rapunzel is all over the place, and I came away with the impression the author wanted to make sure as many children as possible could identify with the main character, leaving her a sort of amorphous blob (on a related note, I had her pegged as nine / ten while reading and was sort of shocked to find out she was thirteen towards the end). The Rapunzel analogy was sort of cute, but, again, something about it didn’t work. A few things happened later in the book that seemed added for the sole purpose of having some sort of action-y climax, and the ending left me feeling less “happily ever after” and more “huh, well, don’t think a kid with a depressed parent should read this.” I think ten-year-old me was smart to avoid the “self-help” fiction genre. Not recommended.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

The cover for this book doesn't tell you anything about what this book is actually about. This is not a fairy tale retelling, it's realistic fiction about a middle school girl, Cadence, writing letters to a mysterious post office box in order to make sense of her dad's clinical depression. Because her father is away, sick due to an Evil Spell (depression), Cadence tries to find some way to help him. She finds part of a letter from her father addresse to a certain post office box, so she decides he must have been writing to a friend and maybe that friend has an idea of how to help her dad. She starts writing to this "friend".

She likens her situation ("locked in" at after school homework club) to Rapunzel's (locked in a tower), and as a result, she signs all of her letters as Rapunzel, so that's where the title comes from.

Cadence has a real, funny voice, and I thought the subject matter was handled very well.

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book.

Cadence is a teen with no close friends and a father suffering from Chronic Depression. After he is hospitalized for a recurrence of his illness, she finds a scrap of a letter to a PO box he writes to. So she starts writing to the person at the box. A lot. Pouring out her thoughts, loneliness and brilliant imagination. Even without a response she finds release in her writings. Insight and maybe some growth. A very lovely, emotional book dealing with the difficulty of families torn by CD (or as she calls it = the evil spell).

[Brianna · Rating 2 out of 5]

My 10 year old self: This is an okay book, as it is interesting sometimes but mostly not. It contains lot's of mystery, and makes you ask questions like, "Why isn't this person answering?" and, "Who is this man... or woman?" I lasted through this, but it was a bit of a pain... In that c ase, I won't tell you to read this or not, just don't buy it. At least read it first if you're thinking about it.

*******

In other words, I'm gonna have to re-read this one.

[Kayla-Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about Rapunzel who writes letters to her parent's and a boy so they all can keep in touch just in case something bad happens. Rapunzel also seemed mad because she was getting frustrated about writing notes every day to her parents and a boy so she stop writing and the parents thought something bad happened to her but she send one more not to the parents and the boy.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a pretty unique book. It's a little boring at times. Seems like the character is just rambling, but it has a good ending.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is really good at describing depression in a way children can understand.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sara Lewis Holmes is master writer. Her stories are deceptively deep and complex. Even cover of the novel leads one to believe that the book will be light and funny, so the reader is not prepared to be taken on such a profound journey. It begins with a witty and intelligent character writing letters to an unknown person. It doesn't take long to realize that these letters are therapeutic to someone who needs to appear strong but who is really worried and searching for hope. Since the book appears to be a fairytale, it comes as a surprise that the story is about there being no such thing as happily ever afters but it teaches this lesson through a really hopeful, uplifting, and insightful story. I wish that this book was more accessible. I had to purchase it used on Amazon. We need more hopeful books directed to adolescents about depression and living with people who suffer from it.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and easy to read in a single sitting, this epistolary is about a gifted, introverted girl whose inner thoughts are laid out for an anonymous PO Box owner to read and reply to. Charming and interesting, I will probably use this book with students (assuming our giant library system decides to buy a bunch more copies!). Read as part of a bibliotherapy book list I'm compiling for gifted introverted tweens.

[JustAGirlWhoLovesBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! I wish I hadn’t waited so long to read this book! I bought this book like 9 years ago when I was in the 4th grade. It’s crazy that I haven’t read it until now. It was interesting to be told a story in letters! I loved the stories “Rapunzel” writes for her projects! Now onto another book…

[Morgan Rondinelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best book I've read in months. Wow. Read it in a few hours, and now I have tears rolling down my face. So, so good. Makes me want to really dive into epistolary books, especially memoirs.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the title suggests, this is, indeed, an epistolary, written by a middle school girl to her father's mysterious Post Office Box. (Not, as the title and cover might suggest, a fairy tale retelling.) After he was taken away due to an Evil Spell (honestly, I can think of worse things to call clinician depression), she is "locked" in Homework Club after school with no way to escape.

I appreciated that the voice sounded believably like a middle-grade kid. So often, middle-school narrators read so much older. I liked that there was some effort to discuss a serious mental health issue, even if, indeed, there wasn't a HEA offered (although things do work out, for now). I liked that, in the end, "Rapunzel" decides that waiting for rescue is silly, and she needed to rescue herself.

[Kiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Letters from Rapunzel is one of those books that, in retrospect, heavily influenced the way I view the world. It was one of the first books I ever read that had the "writing to a mysterious friend" gimmick (I normally give the credit to Daddy Long Legs for that one, but I actually read this book first), it was a book that showed how fairytales can influence our day to day lives, and it showed me how writing and stories can help us survive when our real lives are crumbling around us.

When I first read this, I was on the young side--probably too young to really appreciate the book for what it was. I was drawn in by the fairytale comparisons and the mysterious identity of the person who received our heroine's letters. Reading it as an adult, I'm more drawn to the storytelling and the way "Rapunzel" uses her letters as a form of self-expression after her father is taken away to be treated for clinical depression. "Rapunzel" shies away from the cold reality of mental illness, instead likening it to an "Evil Spell" that she wishes she could magically lift. This was revolutionary in my young eyes and, to this day, it still is: even now, I describe my own moodiness or relatives' mental illnesses as being like "evil spells." And why not? Sometimes we act in ways that are completely out of line without even meaning to, almost as if we are at the mercy of a curse. It's a bang-on-the-money description of not just depression but unhappiness in general and I don't think I've given Holmes enough credit throughout my childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, because "Rapunzel" pretty much single-handedly changed the way I look at and describe mental illness and just plain old emotions.

At its core, when you strip away the snark and fairytale allusions, Letters from Rapunzel is about coping however you can in order to deal with the pain of an ill family member. I don't think the book explores this theme to its full potential, but what we get is very good. Again (another example of why you should re-visit books), when I was a kid a lot of it flew over my head, but as someone who has gone through the hell of living with a depressed family member, particularly during adolescence, this book nailed the experience of struggling to stay afloat in such a difficult time. I also wrote a lot during that period of my life and likened myself to a heroine in a fairytale because it was easier than dealing with the truth of the matter. You could call that a "chicken or the egg" story--after all, I read this book long before my family member was diagnosed, and I'm sure it influenced the way I viewed the situation, to a certain extent--but regardless, this book has tapped into something very raw and very human. It's a story about dealing with a loved one having depression and not being able to help or understand, and it's a story about stories and fairytales and how expressing your thoughts on paper can save you.

My love for this book obviously comes from a very personal place, but it's a strong debut novel nonetheless. I read with a more critical eye this time around and it's impossible to pretend Letters from Rapunzel is perfect, but I think readers will enjoy it, anyway. Despite the overly juvenile writing, I think this book should be read by a higher age bracket than perhaps it targets. It's marketed as one for young readers, but it really belongs to adolescents or, at the very least, kids in their late tweens. If the maturity of the writing matched up to the maturity level of readers at that age, Letters from Rapunzel might be even better. As it is, the book's still a winner--a strong, sassy, all-too-honest look at adolescence, fairytales, and the art of getting by.

4 stars.

[Angel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like how the author wrote this book because I thought it would be similar to the movie " Tangled " but it's actually really different. It's about this girl, it doesn't say her name so just call her Rapunzel, she found a letter that was sent to her dad. She decided to write back. Rapunzel thinks that her dad caught an evil spell but the doctor called it something else. She goes to school and she recently had an assignment about ways to escape Rapunzel from the tower using the 6 simple machines. She realized that sending letters could give her a happily ever after.

[Jennifer Wardrip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

Cadence Brogan aka Rapunzel may have found someone to help her with her problems. That someone is P.O. Box #5667.

Cadence's father has battled clinical depression most of his life. His recent bout has required treatment in the hospital to regulate his medication. Shortly after her father's hospitalization, Cadence discovers a torn piece from a letter her father had written to someone with the address P.O. Box #5667. Not knowing this person, but hoping whoever it is can help shed more light on her father's condition; Cadence begins writing her own letters.

The problems Cadence hopes to get help with include her father's rapid recovery and return home, a busy, hard-working mother, an annoying classmate named Andrew, and mandatory attendance in the GT (Gifted and Talented) program.

A great lover of fairy tales, Cadence focuses on the similarities between herself and the imprisoned Rapunzel. Many of her letters describe her hope to escape and her search to find a cure for the Evil Spell holding her father "prisoner." As she searches for answers, some of what she discovers is not pleasant. In an effort to protect her, Cadence learns that her mother, who refers to her husband's condition as C.D., has not been completely honest about the extent of the depression. Not being able to share her thoughts with her father, more and more of Cadence's feelings pour out in her letters to #5667.

Sara Lewis Holmes cleverly creates Cadence's story through these letters. She has Cadence holding out hope that her letters will be answered, but even as that hope fades, Holmes portrays a positive, up-beat Cadence. Any reader will identify with the struggle to overcome adversity, but this book is sure to hit home with readers who have experience with friends or family members suffering from clinical depression.

[Mz.Adorable84 · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 1st book I have read for my Helen-Ruffin Reading Bowl is Letters from Rapunzel by Sara Lewis Holmes.The characters of this book are;Cadence Rae Brogan(Rapunzel),Her dad and her mom,Mrs.Seisnek,Andrew,Mrs.Booth,Mrs.Trey,and Mrs.Kobroniewski.The setting is at home,during homework club,at Mrs.Booth's house, at the abandoned bridge,and Mrs.Trey's office.The genre is Realistic Non-Fiction because the events that are mentioned in this book are realistic events, but it is non-fiction because it is not true.This book is basically about this girl who compares herself to Rapunzel in a modern day style like when she says that Homework Club is like being locked up in a tower and Mrs.Seisnek is the witch watching her with laser eyes.
This is another one of those books that will get confusing if you dont read between the lines and try to figure out the literary pattern.The authors purpose is of the book is to create a fairy-tale in a modern day.The book's message is never give up because she did not give up on the bridge nor did she give up on the fact that her dad had Clinical Depression to help him.An important symbol is Box#5667 because it symbolizes privacy and expression of herself because she used Box#5667 to express herself in a letter form although she did not find out until later that Box#5667 was not a person it was just herself writing to herself.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story for anyone who loves fairy tales and the power they have to transport and transform. 12 year old "Rapunzel" is struggling to find her feet at a new school, a task made all the more difficult by the fact that she's "three standard deviations above the norm" and her dad, beloved, strong and heroic, has been hospitalised with CD, Clinical Depression, the Evil Spell.
The story is told beautifully through the letters from "Rapunzel" to the mysterious owner of Post Box #5667 with a yearning and confusion that is balanced by a quirky and mischievous sense of humour. The retelling of fairy tales throughout demonstrates the creativity of both the protagonist and author herself. That "Letters from Rapunzel" won the Ursula Nordstrom First Fiction Contest attests to this being a very promising beginning to Sara Lewis Holmes career as a children's author. She has tackled a difficult topic with sensitivity and a well developed understanding of Clinical Depression from the point of view of the child.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking to move on from (or to compliment their reading of) the traditional fairy tale, parents, teachers and anyone who would like to gain further insight into the experiences of children whose parent are effected by mental health issues.

[Jo Oehrlein · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book, thinking it would be a fairy story retelling. It is, sort of, in that the main character feels trapped by her current situation like Rapunzel is trapped. However, that's not the main theme.

"Rapunzel"'s dad has severe depression and is hospitalized. She writes letters to a PO Box whose number she finds among her dad's things.

Early in the book she admits she's no good at school. She gets tested for the gifted class and scores highly, which changes the way the teachers look at her (not necessarily for the good, in her opinion).

I laughed out loud at some of her takes on homework assignments – she truly epitomizes the kid who just can't seem to put out what the teacher wants because she finds all sorts of more interesting
questions to answer.

By the way, this is a real world gifted class -- a one day a week pullout and the kids have to make up all the work they miss. Rapunzel reasonably asks why she'd want to do more work, although she does reconcile herself to the class by the end.

The book has a bunch of very short chapters, making it a really quick read.

Warnings: Although it’s not discussed until late in the book, the girl does discover that her father attempted to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge.

[JeNeal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Did you "get the memo", publisher? The cover for this book didn't do the author any favors, and the story itself is much better than the misleading illustration on the cover. Once you get past your first impressions and get into the story, there is much to appreciate. The format of the letters is "cute" but it's the character herself who eventually emerges and who the reader comes to understand more clearly and connect with emotionally. Only then does it become clear what the Rapunzel connection is. I loved that you don't really find out Cadence's name until near the end of the book. The premise that she feels powerless like a princess in a tower is well presented. There is much in her life that is beyond her control, but she tries to get a handle on it all through her imagination. Being a librarian, I generally resent the stereotypical portrayal of schools and teachers being oppressive and the oppressors to the main characters in young adult novels, but this presentation was more balanced.The more I got into the story the more I found to like and credit the author's craft in the development of her writing. Well done.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't let the cover or title of this book fool you...it is serious stuff. Cadence Rae Brogan, aka, Rapunzel, writes letters to p.o. box #5667, after she surreptitiously finds the box number in her dad's reading chair along with a half-torn letter to the recipient. It seemed as if this mysterious 'person' was the tonic her dad needed to pull him from the hold clinical depression has on him. Cadence writes to #5667, too, in hopes that it will also help her make sense of her dad's hospitalization and worsening condition.

Letters from Rapunzel chronicles Cadence's frustration, feeling of abandonment, and ostracization by her peers at school. Clearly, they are heart-breaking at times, but they also give her a whole truck-load of hope when she finally realizes just what #5667 meant to her dad. This book, put in the right hands, could be a cathartic source for a tween or teen who needs to work through some depression issues at home. And, it may serve as a source of enlightenment for those who may want some information on how depression affects many more than just the person afflicted with it.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Letters from Rapunzel is a middle-school read about a girl whose father is hospitalized for mental health issues. Since her father was her primary caretaker and very close to her, the girl is deeply impacted. She begins writing to a PO Box Number that she found in her father's papers hoping the unknown recipient might help her father get better. The girl sees parallels in her life to Rapunzel and signs her letter as such. I enjoyed the letter writing format as well as the main character's voice (she can be very entertaining!). I found the writing to be refreshing. My only negative comment is that I was pre reading for my 11 year old, and while I found the subject of mental health to be treated in a sensitive way that was on a level mostly appropriate for middle school readers, **SPOILER ALERT** the main character discovers that her dad had almost tried to kill himself and that's what precipitated his hospitalization. For me, this was a little too heavy for 5th/6th grade unless the reader has a family or family friend who has attempted suicide. It was handled delicately, but I think it shifted the target audience to older middle-school.