Eleven and Holding

by Mary Penney

Like The Thing About Jellyfish and Counting by 7s, this sweet, heartfelt middle grade novel illustrates for readers what it’s like to tackle loss, confront hard truths, and find the courage to begin again.

Macy Hollinquest is eleven years old, and don’t count on her to change that anytime soon.

Her birthday is just days away, but she has no intention of turning twelve without her dad by her side. He’d promised to be there for her big day—and yet he’s been gone for months, away doing some kind of secret “important work” after being discharged from the Marines. So she’s staying eleven, no matter what—that is, until she meets Ginger, a nice older lady who is searching for her missing dog. Could Ginger be the perfect cover for attempting to locate her dad?

Macy’s search puts her on a path to a head-on collision with the truth, where she discovers that knowing can sometimes be a heavy burden. And that change, when finally accepted, comes with an unexpected kind of grace.

Mary Penney’s earnest, heartfelt story of change, loss, and new beginnings will resonate with readers on the cusp of new beginnings, and stay in their hearts long after it’s done.

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Juvenile, Childrens, Family, Friendship

256 pages, Hardcover

First published June 7, 2016

Reviews

[Kate]

Great YA book-a mystery along with life lessons. Told by a great character named Macy-who is funny and adorable and persistent in her almost 12 year oldness!

[Steph]

Eleven-year-old Macy has that perfect sort of preteen spunk that I remember so well. Her earnest and assertive attitude is great, as is the Nancy Drew style mystery, the family drama, and the unexpected gay representation. Before Chuck mentioned his life partner, the thought did cross my mind.... but I still howled in shock! I didn't expect them to ACTUALLY have a gay character in this average MG drama. Maybe I'm living in the past; I guess we could do better than a twist at the end of the book. But I was still thrilled by the inclusion, and by Macy's nonchalant response.

Definitely a fun read; it evokes those long preteen summers when life felt so big and so complicated (whether or not it really was).

[Nicole Gubler]

3.5-4 stars. My 11-year old loved it. It’s a simple easy read but deals with big real life issues. It’s a story that makes you wonder as a parent when is the right time to talk to kids about big issues and how much info to give while giving the child’s perspective of being left in the dark.

[Rebecca Gomez]

It was okay. The voice wasn't believable--it didn't sound like an eleven-year-old girl, especially a modern eleven-year-old girl. Authors sometimes make their characters SO quirky that it distracts from the story, and that is how I felt when reading this. Also, nothing much happened until the last third or so of the book. Still, if you like contemporary stories about middle school kids with family issues you might enjoy it.

[Jana]

The issues that eleven-year-old Macy deals with in this middle grade fiction novel are pretty heavy, but I think there are a lot of kids who will be able to relate to this book. Macy's father has been away serving in the military, but now that he's been discharged he's still been hundreds of miles away working on a "special project." Her mom has been doing the best she can to take care of Macy and her baby brother, James, but Macy still resents that she's being left out of the loop as far as being told what's really happening with her father. She's also dealing with the passing of her beloved grandmother, who had run the town's coffee shop for many years. She's also dealing with the normal pressures of being an adolescent who's about to start middle school and she is anxious about all of the changes that continue to swirl around her in the town ironically called "Constant." This book is appropriate for kids in grades six and up.

[Tara Durham]

I was pleasantly surprised by this one. Normally I go into books hesitantly when the main character is 11 going on 12 years old, but this one was done beautifully. I’ve seen so many that are written very immaturely and I can tell you, working at a school that’s 6-8th graders, that’s seldom the case.

This book is about loss, friendship, family struggles....it covers so many emotions. I loved that it was based around a military family and the struggles they go through-that topic seems a little rare for this age bracket.

A beautiful and very quick read. I know I read on another review that it’s too sad and none of their students seek sad books. I have a list a mile long that would love this one!

[Limau Nipis]

This is an honest book and deserve a mention about a heavy topic in a children book.

Macy did not understand why her father was not coming back to celebrate her 12th. And her mother must be blamed for everything that happened in Macy’s life.

Nana dies and her cafe was sold to Chuck. Macy blamed her mom because Nana loved the cafe. Mom went silent mode and did not explain to Macy on her decision.

I was thinking Macy’s father had something terrible happened to him, but it was totally unexpected.

Hence, this book wrote beautifully on how Macy agrd and become matures as an 11-year old entering her 12.

[Gigi]

This book so subtle and just an amazing reflection of children and their innocence. I think the plot twist at the end made me cry because there is so deeply profound in the way realization hits you for the first time. In reality, there is always one point in your life where it occurs to you, your father isn’t immortal, your time is valuable, childhood is valuable, etc and something about this book just Segways from childhood to (still childhood but) something deemed not for kids. I would recommend this book to anyone whose parents have had to be on a “secret mission” before. There is someone you can connect to, even if it’s on paper. Marry Penney is a brilliant author.

[P.A. Pursley]

I picked this up because of the title and story synopsis. It really was a well written book. I enjoyed the characters and the story line. Sometimes it is difficult to remember that we can try to protect our children from things but they will always know when something is wrong.

If you enjoy reading books that help you to understand another generation...this book is for you!

[Karrie]

A charming young reader book about accepting change. Macy has little foibles, that make her more realistic and relatable.

A little mystery tied in with a major life change, set Macy on a journey of learning. Diverse cast of characters well portrayed, I especially liked the respect paid to mothers and grandmothers.

[Christina Cheshire]

This was a good read! I just wish I could have read more about the dad’s recovery and seeing if the family would be restored again, what would happen to Twee’s dream trip to Vietnam, and Switch’s foster future. Maybe the author will write a follow-up book to this? Maybe she has and I just haven’t found it yet.

[Linda Reed]

Loved this story. My only critique would be that the character sounded young for her age. This story address the effects of PTS on the war vet and their families and is a good read for young readers who may be experiencing the same feelings.

[Isabelle Lea Tapia]

Found this book at my local Costco a couple years ago and thought it looked interesting. It was but feel this type of reading genre is for early middle school aged children hence it being in the children's section. Overall great book.

[Elizabeth]

Sweet and sad.

[Malia]

I loved this book! It's full of warm, endearing characters, and it's got a wonderful storyline.

[Melody]

Timely topics, nicely handled.

[Maeve Conway]

It was a good book. That has a lot of meaning and feelings and it made me think more.

[Azra's Book Corner]

I really enjoyed this book it is very realstic but I felt like the setting was a long time ago

[Kristin]

It was okay, yet I don’t see myself recommending to a friend. It seemed like everything was laid out to be very obvious to the reader- and we were waiting for the protagonist to ‘figure’ it out.

[Sarah p.]

I think that was a great book it mad me cry a couple of times but other than that it was a very good book!

[Wendy]

I'll be recommending this to anyone that liked "The Lonely Heart of Maybelle Lane "

[Gabbie Strobeen]

Good

[Deanna]

One of my new favorite authors! Loved this story.

[Macy C]

lol I love this book, mainly cuz the main character has the same name as me, but parts of it were fun to read too.

[kazeliteration]

never thought i would love and adore this book as much as i do

[Tricia Robertson]

it was s cute book.

[GothicGiggleCiCi]

This was a kind of cute coming-of-age story that explores all the crooks and crannies of what a family truly is. I did feel like the main character acted a bit older than what she was proclaimed to be (and not in a "they're just growing up" kind of way) which made certain language and aspects of the story seem unbalanced.

Overall, it was shorter read and even though the story revolves around family, I felt like the story remained in shallow water even when expressing the intense struggles of one of the parents.

Not bad at all, though not very memorable.

[L Anderson]

A gem of a tale which explores the trouble of being a tween and juggling the desire to be treated and looked upon as a fully, capable young adult but with the emotional instability of a child.

[Madison]

Macy has always thought of her military dad as her hero. This latest job though has kept him away from home longer than ever - not even coming home for her birthday - so she decides that she needs to go bring him home. As she deals with the loss of grandmother and her missing father, she learns that growing up isn't all it's cracked up to be. Not everything is the way that it looks or seems.

[E.]

“eleven and holding” by Mary Penney addresses change and loss as filtered through the eyes of a young girl who is daunted by the absence of her beloved military father as well as the potential absence of her best friend Tui (who lets herself be known as Twee for pronunciation efficacy) while dealing with the permanent absence of her beloved grandmother, Nana. There are some things she can’t do anything about, like the creep who has bought her Nana’s coffee shop, or her annoying baby brother who adores his big sister, but there are other things she is not willing to give up without a fight, and she works diligently at finding a solution to other problems in her own inimitable style.

This children’s story is a wonderfully deceptive story that starts with a simple premise and slowly becomes increasingly more poignant and emotional. I love the way the author invested me with Macy’s perspective and the reason for her frustration at her father’s absence, her antipathy against the man who purchased Macy’s grandmom’s coffee shop, and disinclination to advance to a new school without her best friend. The simple is combined with the complex as a lost dog, irritating boy, and apparently disloyal actions on the part of her mom evolve to a life-changing series of events that I believe would overwhelm anyone, let alone an almost-twelve-year-old. The contrast between the events and the town’s name is a nice allegory for the entire story. The phrasing of the story is whimsical and tilted just enough that I was able to see events through her eyes and become fascinated by her approach to challenges. I was very touched by this story and think that young and old alike will appreciate it, but warn readers to have the tissue box close at hand.

A copy of this title was provided to me for review, a version of which has been submitted to Night Owl Reviews.