June Sparrow and the Million-Dollar Penny

by Rebecca Chace, Kacey Schwartz (Illustrator)

A charming, classic middle grade debut perfect for fans of Three Times Lucky and Because of Winn-Dixie with the most lovable pig since Wilbur in Charlotte's Web.

June Sparrow and her best friend-a miniature pig named Indigo Bunting-have always been just fine on their own. June is a wealthy orphan who's lived in New York City her whole life. But on June's twelfth birthday, she suddenly loses her fortune and is forced to move in with an aunt she's never even met, in the tiny town of Red Bank, South Dakota, a place so small that it doesn't even have a traffic light.

Now June has to live on a farm with grouchy Aunt Bridget, who sees her best friend as potential bacon! Then one day, June finds a mysterious Penny Book that her mother used to keep. She is instantly intrigued by what her mother called the Big One, the rarest and most valuable of all pennies. Finding it could be June's ticket back to New York and her old life. But the only guide June and Indigo have is a cryptic list her mom left behind.

To decode the list and find the Big One, June and Indigo enlist the help of some new friends in Red Bank and turn the town upside down in their search. But the most surprising mystery of all may be what brought June to Red Bank in the first place-and what is most valuable to her in the end.

Genres: Middle Grade, Childrens, Fiction

352 pages, Hardcover

First published May 30, 2017

About the author

Rebecca Chace’s fifth book, Talking to the Wolf, is forthcoming from Red Hen Press in 2026. She is the author of Leaving Rock Harbor (New York Times, "Editors Choice" and New England Book Award Finalist); Capture the Flag, Chautauqua Summer (New York Times Notable Book and Picks of Summer); June Sparrow and The Million Dollar Penny (middle-grade). Chace adapted her novel "Capture the Flag" into a short film with director, Lisanne Skyler. The film was awarded the Showtime Tony Cox Best Screenplay short film award at the Nantucket Film Festival. She is a contributor to The New York Times and has written nonfiction essays and reviews for The Yale Review, LA Review of Books, Guernica, Lit Hub, The Brooklyn Rail, Bookpost, and many other publications. Fellowships include Civitella Ranieri, MacDowell, Yaddo, Dora Maar House, American Academy in Rome (visiting artist), and others. She is a Faculty Associate at the Bard College Institute for Writing and Thinking.

Reviews

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book at the ALA Mid-Winter Conference.

I was originally drawn to this book because of the cover and the size/style of font in the text. I am always on the lookout for books that younger readers can enjoy. Quite often younger students can read at a higher reading level, but the content is more mature than what they are ready for.

This book is just the kind of book I am on the lookout for! It was a great story: June Sparrow, a young rich orphan living in in New York City with her pet pig suddenly loses her fortune and must move out to South Dakota to live on a farm with an Aunt that she has never met.

June Sparrow is a wonderful character, full of charm but also possessing a fierce temper when pushed by circumstances. While at the farm, June discovers a box that belonged to her mother containing a penny book--a journal of sorts--that uses pennies to define the moments in the book. It is immediately confiscated by her aunt for reasons unbeknownst to June. Much of the remaining story revolves around June trying to get the Penny Book back, and is fueled by the friends she meets along her journey. A list written by her mother in a special code also serves as an incentive for June, as she tries to crack the code and locate a rare penny that would give her the means to head back to New York. But does New York hold Junes heart like it did in the past? Or has she found a new place to call "home"?

The story is filled with lovable eccentric characters, a best friend who's a pig, and our mighty heroine who works through the adversities that life throws at her. I can't wait to recommend this book to my higher younger readers, as well as my lower older readers.

[Jason June · Rating 5 out of 5]

This reads like a classic! I instantly fell in love with June Sparrow and sweet Indigo. This had that perfect mix of outlandish lifestyles for both kids and pigs, and good ol' country heart. It felt like a reverse take on "Annie," and I highly recommend it!

[Pine Reads Review · Rating 4 out of 5]

“How could she miss what she could hardly remember?”

June Sparrow, a wealthy orphan from New York City, is devastated to learn on the night of her twelfth birthday that her financial manager has been involved in investment fraud and lost her entire fortune. She is forced to move to Red Bank, South Dakota, to live with her estranged aunt Bridget with only the clothes on her back and pet miniature pig Indigo Bunting. June has never been outside the big city, and her aunt is less than welcoming. However, she discovers her mother’s Penny Book that speaks of “The Big One,” a valuable 1943 copper-alloy penny that would allow June to resume her life of luxury. However, June and Indigo’s only clue is a cryptic list of riddles. Along the way, June will be forced to learn more about her mysterious past and adapt to life on the farm.

One of my hobbies during middle school was collecting coins. Although I never found anything valuable, reading June Sparrow and the Million-Dollar Penny would have been right up my alley. The main character, June Sparrow, is persistent in her pursuit of returning to the life she longs for in New York City. June is forced to question her past, present, and future and is not pleased with everything she learns. This determination and grit can inspire young readers to follow their dreams and passions. Removed from her life of luxury, June is able to grow and starts to question things she never considered before, such as unemployment, family ties, and friendship. While I enjoyed June’s journey to find “The Big One,” arguably the star of the story is her pet miniature pig, Indigo Bunting. Indigo is more than just a pet; he is June’s confident best friend. He is also more intelligent than any cat or dog and always knows what June thinks and feels. I especially enjoyed the illustrations before each chapter and those within. Readers will love seeing Indigo dressed up for the opera and as a farmer! The ending is particularly touching and well done. June Sparrow and the Million-Dollar Penny is the perfect heartwarming read for fellow coin collectors that features an adorable miniature pig.

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[Susan Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

June Sparrow is an orphan - her parents died when she was a little girl. This hasn't stopped her from having a happy life however. Her parents just happened to be very rich, so even after they died June was able to remain in their luxury apartment in New York City, along with her miniature pig, Indigo Bunting. On the night of her twelfth birthday June has celebrated by going to her favorite opera when she gets horrible news: her legal guardian and former CFO of her parent's company has lost all of her money in a Ponzi scheme. He's going to jail - and June is going to South Dakota. June's Aunt Bridget - who she's never even met! - lives there in the tiny town of Red Bank. There's no opera in Red Bank, much less anything else resembling any of her former life. Red Bank is a farm town, and Aunt Bridget is a no-nonsense farmer. June and Indigo are grudgingly welcomed, and June is directed to her mother's former room. There she finds some more casual clothes that more or less fit her - and a box of her mother's things from when she was June's age. Included is her mother's Penny Book, which mentions a valuable penny worth millions that her mother supposedly found years ago. This piques June's interest; if she can find the penny she'll be able to go back to her old life in New York. But the only clue is a cryptic message from her mother. Can June figure it out? This sweet mystery will be enjoyed by readers in grade 4-6 and is a good one to recommend for younger readers reading at a higher level.

[Talia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is your classic riches to rags story!
To start, June Sparrow's parents died when she was really little and left her a ton of money. She's lived her whole life in NYC as a rich orphan, able to do whatever she wants. On her twelfth birthday, June finds out her entire fortune is gone. She has to move to Dakota to live with her aunt, who she's never even met before. Life in New York and Dakota are totally different, and June is convinced she can follow in her mother's footsteps and find a very rare and old penny that will give her enough money to move back to NYC and leave Dakota behind.

I feel like this book would make a really good movie, June has a super positive "can-do" attitude about her situation, and she also has an adorable pet pig named Indigo Bunting who is basically her best friend. There's a little bit of a mystery underneath this story too, June's mom had left behind a strange coded message that June is convinced will help her find the penny that will make her rich, and you can try to figure out the code before June can.

((One thing I will note is that mini pigs are not real. The smallest full grown pigs are like 40 pounds, not four, so don't try and convince your mom you want a mini pig because you will not get one. And you will look it up online and try and get a mini pig and they won't be real and it will be sad.))

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good middle grade tale about a girl and her pet miniature pig forced to leave her life of comfort in New York City due to financial reversal and return to her mother's rural hometown. Her mother is deceased and June Sparrow has lived in relative isolation for most of her life. Her sudden appearance in this small South Dakota town causes dislocation and confusion to everyone, including her aunt, her mother's former neighbors as well as June herself. But June is in search of something she believes her mother has left her that will solve all of her problems. If only she can find it before something weird happens, such as making friends or finding home in a strange place. I received my copy from the publisher through edelweiss.

[Oriana Parsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

June Sparrow and the Million-Dollar Penny is a great book. This is one of the many books you cannot judge by its cover. The cover really is the worst part of the book, but that is saying g a lot about how good the book is because the cover really is not ad at all! The best part is the theme it teaches the reader. It really lifts your spirits and encourages you to do more for people you care much about. Please give this book a try, I am sure you will like it. Also, I gave it four stars because it wasn't a "perfect' book, nothing is. I would have given it a "four-and-a-half", but I couldn't so it's stuck with a four.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

the fluffiest fluff that ever did fluff. cute but/and simple. 2.5 ish stars. kid might like it more, esp. if a fan of dick king-smith.

If your young readers like this one, send em on over to Charlotte's Web or Babe.

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Young readers are going to love June and her pet pig! They'll have fun solving the mystery that June finds along the way. Reluctant readers may even be encouraged to read this story! Fun tale!

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you love Charlotte's Web or Dick King-Smith's Lady Lollipop you will enjoy June and her tea cup pig.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Humorous and a solid choice but it took me a while to get to like June Sparrow - she made really impulsive, selfish chocies. On point for the character, I think, but frustrating for me to read.

[Zyin Colon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love it fun and amazing. Im really glad that Rebecca Chace wrote this book. My name is zyin colon. thank you very much for writing this book!!!!!!!!!!

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read with the kids!

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute story!

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fell in love with this book right out the gate. Loved the characters but Indigo the pig is just the best.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very, very charming!

[JB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice

[Jessica (Goldenfurpro) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short and Simple Review
This was a cute little book and I read it fairly quickly. It's a riches to rags tell (rather than rags to riches) and it features a happy orphan. The plotline is done really quickly, but the major aspect of this book is the characters. I loved the characters. June Sparrow, while rich, is not unbearable. She's trying to get used to living in a completely new environment. I liked seeing her interact with all the people of Red Back and there's Indigo Bunting, of course, her pet pig. The book is really predictable. There's a little plot involving a list June finds of her mother's, and I knew early on what the list was referring to (but I'm an adult so...). The book reminded me a little of a Hallmark movie. You know the ones. Character comes from the big city and finds family in a small town. While predictable, I don't think it's a bad thing. It made for an enjoyable read and I think it's a great middle-grade book.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Zakir · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book with a good story overall decent 6.5/10