Life, Loss, and Lemonade

Mostly Miserable Life of April Sinclair #8

by Laurie B. Friedman, Natasha Shaloshvili (Illustrator)

As freshman year winds down, April has a lot to look forward to, including getting her driving permit and spending the summer with her quirky almost-boyfriend, Leo. But she also knows her grandmother, Gaga, doesn't have much time left. On top of that, her closest friend, Sophie, is moving away. April struggles to make sense of everything. Does it matter if you stay positive while losing a loved one to cancer? What do you do when you're caught between friends keeping secrets? How do you know whether an important decision is the right one? Most importantly, what would Gaga say to do when life hands you lemons?

172 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 1, 2017

About the author

Laurie Friedman is the author and ghostwriter of over 300 award-winning picture books, easy readers, chapter books, and novels for young readers including the bestselling Mallory McDonald series, the Moose the Dog easy reader series, the Camp Creepy Lake and Wendy & Willow chapter books, and may picture books including Cows in the House and Love, Ruby Valentine.

Reviews

[Elsa R · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book so much because it had sad, funny, and happy parts in it. If you are a 5th or 6th grader you'd love it as well. This series by Laurie Friedman, Mostly Miserable Life of April Sinclair is similar to the Willow Falls series by Wendy Mass. Basically what happens in this book is April's grandmother dies and she's always told April what to do when she needed help and she and Sophie had their first fight on the last day she was going to be in town before moving back to New York. At the end of the book Brynn apologized to April, Sophie, And Billy on how she treated them.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes life is unfair. The pottery store in which Alice planned to celebrate her fifteenth birthday burns down, her grandmother is readmitted to the hospital for a collapsed lung following her cancer treatment, and her best friend, Sophie, is moving. In addition, Alice’s almost-boyfriend, Leo, announces he is leaving for Costa Rica and won’t be around this summer. She also carries the burden of secrets—why Brynn dropped her as a friend; that Sophie invited her boyfriend, Billy, to visit her in New York but didn’t mention it to Alice; and that Billy isn’t sure about going to visit Sophie—all while dealing with the impending loss of her grandmother. April must dig deep to find strength and solutions in this final installment of the series. Life, Loss, and Lemonade is a satisfying stand-alone novel, which may lead readers to earlier books in the series.

[Addisyn W · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book because it relates to real life. For example her grandma dies and her cousin moves away. Also there is a camp she can't decide to go to or not. The book would suit 4th/5th graders how like realistic fiction. If you liked this book you would like the rest of the series. Will April go to camp read this book to find out.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tough times are ahead for April Sinclair in this final installment of Friedman’s series about a spunky girl making her way through the complexities of adolescent life. On her fifteenth birthday, her beloved grandmother, aka Gaga, suffers a collapsed lung--a side effect of her terminal cancer--and winds up in the hospital. In addition to the family crisis Gaga’s serious illness imparts, April must also deal with all sorts of friend drama, including secrets that she knows will eventually cause more heartache. Fortunately, even with all the turmoil, April’s got a solid support system that will help see her through even the worst of times. Though April is often insecure and self-centered, she’s loyal and determined, and learning to consider others’ viewpoints. Readers who have read the series from the beginning will best be able to understand the history behind each of the relationships, but those just meeting April and her crew for the first time will find enough background to appreciate this story--and may even be inspired to give the earlier books a try.

*Review copy received from publisher for review for the Children's Literature Database

[Iris R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book because it had a little romance near the end. It would be perfect to anyone who enjoys the April Sinclair books or if you like the books that Heather Vogel Frederick writes. This story involves a Freshman named April Sinclair. She had some exiting things when her cousin came from New York. When she left they had a huge fight and didn't talk for awhile but they called and made up. She also made up with her friends Brynn and Billy. The also had a fight a didn't speak for five months. Then it ended up with April surprising her sisters May and June by telling them April was going to camp.

[Nora S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a great book because I never knew what was happening next. If you are a girl in 4th-6th grade that has read the other and liked the other books in the series, you will like this one also. In the book April is planning on spending the summer with summer with Leo. And her best friend/almost cousin Sophie is going to move to New York thinking her boyfriend Billy is going to come with her. Billy tells April he doesn't want to go to New York but is to scared to tell Sophie. Billy ever tell Sophie he isnt going? Does April spend her summer with Leo? Read the book to find out.