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All the Ways Home
Sometimes, home isn't where you expect to find it.
After losing his mom in a fatal car crash, Kaede Hirano--now living with a grandfather who is more stranger than family--developed anger issues and spent his last year of middle school acting out.
Best-friendless and critically in danger repeating the seventh grade, Kaede is given a summer assignment: write an essay about what home means to him, which will be even tougher now that he's on his way to Japan to reconnect with his estranged father and older half-brother. Still, if there's a chance Kaede can finally build a new family from an old one, he's willing to try. But building new relationships isn't as easy as destroying his old ones, and one last desperate act will change the way Kaede sees everyone--including himself.
This is a book about what home means to us--and that there are many different correct answers.
After losing his mom in a fatal car crash, Kaede Hirano--now living with a grandfather who is more stranger than family--developed anger issues and spent his last year of middle school acting out.
Best-friendless and critically in danger repeating the seventh grade, Kaede is given a summer assignment: write an essay about what home means to him, which will be even tougher now that he's on his way to Japan to reconnect with his estranged father and older half-brother. Still, if there's a chance Kaede can finally build a new family from an old one, he's willing to try. But building new relationships isn't as easy as destroying his old ones, and one last desperate act will change the way Kaede sees everyone--including himself.
This is a book about what home means to us--and that there are many different correct answers.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published May 28, 2019
11 people are currently reading
782 people want to read
About the author
Elsie Chapman
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Elsie Chapman grew up in Prince George, Canada, and has a degree in English literature from the University of British Columbia. She is the author of the YA novels Dualed, Divided, Along the Indigo, and Caster as well as the MG novel All the Ways Home, and co-editor of A Thousand Beginnings and Endings and Hungry Hearts. She currently lives in Tokyo, Japan, with her family.
Elsie Chapman grew up in Prince George, Canada, and has a degree in English literature from the University of British Columbia. She is the author of the YA novels Dualed, Divided, Along the Indigo, and Caster as well as the MG novel All the Ways Home, and co-editor of A Thousand Beginnings and Endings and Hungry Hearts. She currently lives in Tokyo, Japan, with her family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
January 27, 2019
This is such a perfect warm hug of a book - with a hero so raw and wounded, he doesn't even believe he deserves that kind of compassion and forgiveness any more. But he does, I loved him and felt for him from the very first page, and I CHEERED at the absolutely perfect ending.
Kaede was born in Japan and spent his first three years there with a dad and a mom and an older half-brother. Then his parents divorced, his mom took him with her to Canada, and his dad - who was always neglectful - broke off the relationship completely, no longer even replying to Kaede's emails. Even Kaede's memories of his older brother faded away, and all his home became Canada, with his mom and his friends and his world there...
...until his mom was killed in a car accident and Kaede was left alone at 12 years old, looked after by a grandfather he barely knows and can't connect with, and full of rage and pain and loss that had no healthy outlets. The mistakes he made during that time were serious and life-changing - and now it's the summer afterwards, when he's being packed off to Japan for three weeks to stay with a father he doesn't know, who's never shown any interest in him, because his grandfather needs time off. He's carrying with him an assignment that will decide whether he can even move on to 8th grade when he gets back, or whether he'll have to repeat 7th grade: in what feels like bitter irony, he has to create a project about the concept of 'home.'
But when Kaede arrives in Tokyo, his dad isn't even there to greet him. Instead, he's met by his older half-brother, Shoma, because their dad has flitted off again, fleeing the responsibilities of family and home...but Shoma is determined to be there for him. And if Kaede - so lost and scared and hurt and angry - can only dare to feel hope again, and to meet his long-lost big brother halfway, he might find his true home after all.
There is so much emotion packed into this short book, and it is written so beautifully. My heart felt full as I read it, and there were parts where I hurt SO MUCH for Kaede that it was hard to keep going. But there was so much pleasure in the reading, too. Most importantly, there's the love that builds between him and his brother, two boys who were both abandoned in different ways and are now tentatively building a real family of their own, together. Their relationship felt so true and beautiful. But also, it was just so much fun to read the vivid descriptions of different parts of Tokyo and other Japanese cities, as Kaede rediscovers his first home, with all the familiarity and strangeness that comes with having been away from it for 9 years.
As an immigrant myself, Kaede's confusion about which country IS his home resonated so, so much for me - that feeling of belonging to both and neither at the same time. And the exploration of what "home" really means (to him and to his brother and to other people, too) is so meaningful and so perfectly done throughout the book.
Watching Kaede and Shoma come together as brothers made me so, so happy, and the ending of the book was Just Right. After I finished it, I sat there beaming down at the cover, just delighted with it - and feeling so lucky that I'd gotten to read an early copy.
Highly, highly recommended to any readers 9 and up!
Kaede was born in Japan and spent his first three years there with a dad and a mom and an older half-brother. Then his parents divorced, his mom took him with her to Canada, and his dad - who was always neglectful - broke off the relationship completely, no longer even replying to Kaede's emails. Even Kaede's memories of his older brother faded away, and all his home became Canada, with his mom and his friends and his world there...
...until his mom was killed in a car accident and Kaede was left alone at 12 years old, looked after by a grandfather he barely knows and can't connect with, and full of rage and pain and loss that had no healthy outlets. The mistakes he made during that time were serious and life-changing - and now it's the summer afterwards, when he's being packed off to Japan for three weeks to stay with a father he doesn't know, who's never shown any interest in him, because his grandfather needs time off. He's carrying with him an assignment that will decide whether he can even move on to 8th grade when he gets back, or whether he'll have to repeat 7th grade: in what feels like bitter irony, he has to create a project about the concept of 'home.'
But when Kaede arrives in Tokyo, his dad isn't even there to greet him. Instead, he's met by his older half-brother, Shoma, because their dad has flitted off again, fleeing the responsibilities of family and home...but Shoma is determined to be there for him. And if Kaede - so lost and scared and hurt and angry - can only dare to feel hope again, and to meet his long-lost big brother halfway, he might find his true home after all.
There is so much emotion packed into this short book, and it is written so beautifully. My heart felt full as I read it, and there were parts where I hurt SO MUCH for Kaede that it was hard to keep going. But there was so much pleasure in the reading, too. Most importantly, there's the love that builds between him and his brother, two boys who were both abandoned in different ways and are now tentatively building a real family of their own, together. Their relationship felt so true and beautiful. But also, it was just so much fun to read the vivid descriptions of different parts of Tokyo and other Japanese cities, as Kaede rediscovers his first home, with all the familiarity and strangeness that comes with having been away from it for 9 years.
As an immigrant myself, Kaede's confusion about which country IS his home resonated so, so much for me - that feeling of belonging to both and neither at the same time. And the exploration of what "home" really means (to him and to his brother and to other people, too) is so meaningful and so perfectly done throughout the book.
Watching Kaede and Shoma come together as brothers made me so, so happy, and the ending of the book was Just Right. After I finished it, I sat there beaming down at the cover, just delighted with it - and feeling so lucky that I'd gotten to read an early copy.
Highly, highly recommended to any readers 9 and up!
March 16, 2020
I spent the entirety of this book crying or wanting to cry. it's a little book about what home means to each of us, and it broke my heart again and again. it's a love letter to Japan and its culture. but it's also a love letter to family, and the people you decide are family to you.
July 11, 2020
This book was so lovely! I deeply appreciated how Japan and its culture were represented on the page and how accurate and real it all felt. Kaede is a kid who's experienced a lot of loss and pain for someone his age and I'm glad he had the opportunity to discover what home means to him. Also, can I just say how much I loved Shoma? He's the sweetest guy ever and through his actions it was obvious how much he cared about Kaede and their sibling relationship.
I totally recommend this book!
I totally recommend this book!
April 4, 2021
This is such a beautiful story!
November 14, 2021
All The Ways Home made me cry... A lot.
What a gorgeous reflection on family, friendship, and the meaning of 'home'. This book is middle-grade, but I highly recommend it to readers of all ages - as long as you're okay with your heart getting ripped apart and then lovingly knit back together.
What a gorgeous reflection on family, friendship, and the meaning of 'home'. This book is middle-grade, but I highly recommend it to readers of all ages - as long as you're okay with your heart getting ripped apart and then lovingly knit back together.
March 8, 2019
Huge thank you to Raincoast for this ARC!
I felt emotional reading All the Ways Home. Not only did the book make me nostalgic for my recent trip to Japan, but it made me feel for Kaede, a boy who just wants someone to love him after the death of his mother. While I cannot relate to way Kaede's mother dies, I can in the sense that like him, there are days where I pine for my folks because there is so much I want to tell them, and no way to truly do so.
This is the story of Kaede returning to Tokyo after the death of his mother. He's on the verge of failing 7th Grade, he's accidentally hurt his best friend back home in Vancouver, and he's trying to define what 'home' means to him. Arriving in Tokyo, he meets up with his brother Shoma, who takes him in for the three weeks he is there. Hoping to see his famous father while in Tokyo, Kaede learns that not every person is as they seem. The growth of Kaede and Shoma's relationship is one of my favourite aspects of this story. It's subtle, it shows how people can move from estrangement to a level of comfort, especially as Shoma recognizes that he hasn't been around for Kaede in such a long time, but when you learn why, you're able to empathize with him as much as Kaede.
I also loved the visuals that Chapman provides in this story. There's so many places that she references that I've been to, and it really took me back to my trip. At times I found myself poking my husband and yelling "WE'VE BEEN THERE!" which is silly, but it made me yearn for that kind of adventure again. Tokyo is an intense city, and I loved reading the bits where Kaede gets lost in Kabukicho, which was one of my favourite places to visit. Reading about the hustle and bustle of people's lives and being able to visualize it so clearly is a wonderful feat and Chapman makes the story feel so authentic, especially when she talks about both Canada and Japan. She reminded me of the beauty of both places in such a short novel.
Kaede's story is beautiful, and I was invested the whole way. My heart wept when he finally got to "meet" his father, his determination to find the meaning of home, and just how difficult it is to navigate the world when you're grieving everything you've lost. There is so much that me, as a thirty-year-old woman could relate to, even though this story is geared towards a middle grade audience. This is one of the sweet, most difficult middle grade novels I've read in a long time, and I urge everyone to check out because it's an emotional ride.
I felt emotional reading All the Ways Home. Not only did the book make me nostalgic for my recent trip to Japan, but it made me feel for Kaede, a boy who just wants someone to love him after the death of his mother. While I cannot relate to way Kaede's mother dies, I can in the sense that like him, there are days where I pine for my folks because there is so much I want to tell them, and no way to truly do so.
This is the story of Kaede returning to Tokyo after the death of his mother. He's on the verge of failing 7th Grade, he's accidentally hurt his best friend back home in Vancouver, and he's trying to define what 'home' means to him. Arriving in Tokyo, he meets up with his brother Shoma, who takes him in for the three weeks he is there. Hoping to see his famous father while in Tokyo, Kaede learns that not every person is as they seem. The growth of Kaede and Shoma's relationship is one of my favourite aspects of this story. It's subtle, it shows how people can move from estrangement to a level of comfort, especially as Shoma recognizes that he hasn't been around for Kaede in such a long time, but when you learn why, you're able to empathize with him as much as Kaede.
I also loved the visuals that Chapman provides in this story. There's so many places that she references that I've been to, and it really took me back to my trip. At times I found myself poking my husband and yelling "WE'VE BEEN THERE!" which is silly, but it made me yearn for that kind of adventure again. Tokyo is an intense city, and I loved reading the bits where Kaede gets lost in Kabukicho, which was one of my favourite places to visit. Reading about the hustle and bustle of people's lives and being able to visualize it so clearly is a wonderful feat and Chapman makes the story feel so authentic, especially when she talks about both Canada and Japan. She reminded me of the beauty of both places in such a short novel.
Kaede's story is beautiful, and I was invested the whole way. My heart wept when he finally got to "meet" his father, his determination to find the meaning of home, and just how difficult it is to navigate the world when you're grieving everything you've lost. There is so much that me, as a thirty-year-old woman could relate to, even though this story is geared towards a middle grade audience. This is one of the sweet, most difficult middle grade novels I've read in a long time, and I urge everyone to check out because it's an emotional ride.
May 20, 2019
Kaede is twelve years old and his life has been in a downward spiral since his mom died in an accident. His summer extra credit assignment is to fill up a notebook and define "home." Kaede only remembers Vancouver as home, but he was born in Japan. He flies from Vancouver to Japan to spend the summer with his older half-brother and dad -- family he has not seen for nearly a decade. He is impressed by how cool his brother is and how effortlessly he absorbs Kaede into his busy life. As the weeks go by, their father is still away on a photography assignment. Kaede desperately wants to connect with his father to finish his assignment and acts out of that urgency in the poignant climax of this middle grade novel. Readers will empathize with Kaede and appreciate the strong sense of place as they go along on his journey to find "home." We can all learn a thing or two from young Kaede.
Thank you to Macmillan Children's and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Macmillan Children's and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
June 2, 2019
There is something so good about reading a book, set in a time in place, that shows the author knows what they are writing about.
Kaede means maple in Japanese. You don't need to know this. You don't need to know that "Nothings Carved in Stone" is a real musical group. You don't need to know the areas of Tokyo either.
Kaede is in Japan because his mother died. Kaede is in Japan because his father abandoned him, and he is hoping to reconnect with him while he is here. Kaede is in Japan because he is moorless, his sails flapping in the wind, no idea which way to go with his life.
Kaede has questions he wants answers to. He calls it is box of questions, but the main one is why his dad abandoned them. And not only abandoned him, but abandoned his half brother who he is staying with while he waits for his father to make an appearance.
The descriptions of Tokyo are wonderful, as are what is written about Osaka. While it is not a travel book, the travel that does happen is realistic, and real.
I love well researched books, and this definitely one such one.
And the story is good as well, as it tears at your heart.
Kaede means maple in Japanese. You don't need to know this. You don't need to know that "Nothings Carved in Stone" is a real musical group. You don't need to know the areas of Tokyo either.
Kaede is in Japan because his mother died. Kaede is in Japan because his father abandoned him, and he is hoping to reconnect with him while he is here. Kaede is in Japan because he is moorless, his sails flapping in the wind, no idea which way to go with his life.
Kaede has questions he wants answers to. He calls it is box of questions, but the main one is why his dad abandoned them. And not only abandoned him, but abandoned his half brother who he is staying with while he waits for his father to make an appearance.
The descriptions of Tokyo are wonderful, as are what is written about Osaka. While it is not a travel book, the travel that does happen is realistic, and real.
I love well researched books, and this definitely one such one.
And the story is good as well, as it tears at your heart.
May 15, 2019
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I am utterly smitten with All the Ways Home. Talk about a book that hits all my sweet spots: a complex family relationship, a main character struggling with his mistakes and forgiveness, and the concept of what home is. If you're searching for a book that will evoke all the emotions on the spectrum, All the Ways Home is the one.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
I am utterly smitten with All the Ways Home. Talk about a book that hits all my sweet spots: a complex family relationship, a main character struggling with his mistakes and forgiveness, and the concept of what home is. If you're searching for a book that will evoke all the emotions on the spectrum, All the Ways Home is the one.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
April 5, 2019
This was so, so lovely!
July 19, 2019
This was beautiful.
June 10, 2022
3.5🌟
I love how strongly Japan's culture shines in this middle grade! Reading it made me even more excited to one day visit Tokyo myself. I also loved the sibling relationship between Kaede and his brother, Shoma. However, I can't neglect to mention my biggest complaint with this book - I truly don't believe the writing style is very accessible for most middle grade readers.
Kaede is supposed to be a 12-year-old, yet his voice is much too metaphorical and literary in nature for that to be realistic. Because of this, I think the targeted audience would struggle to stay engaged with the story. Also, I think the ending was a bit rushed and not the most believable.
Overall, I do think All the Ways Home is a good story with a good message behind it, but I would (unfortunately) hesitate in recommending it to the average middle grade reader due to its more advanced writing style. This book has definitely encouraged me to seek out more stories set in Japan, though!
I love how strongly Japan's culture shines in this middle grade! Reading it made me even more excited to one day visit Tokyo myself. I also loved the sibling relationship between Kaede and his brother, Shoma. However, I can't neglect to mention my biggest complaint with this book - I truly don't believe the writing style is very accessible for most middle grade readers.
Kaede is supposed to be a 12-year-old, yet his voice is much too metaphorical and literary in nature for that to be realistic. Because of this, I think the targeted audience would struggle to stay engaged with the story. Also, I think the ending was a bit rushed and not the most believable.
Overall, I do think All the Ways Home is a good story with a good message behind it, but I would (unfortunately) hesitate in recommending it to the average middle grade reader due to its more advanced writing style. This book has definitely encouraged me to seek out more stories set in Japan, though!
December 27, 2018
This book was received as an ARC from Macmillan Children's Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.
This book will really open minds for children across the world and will in my opinion introduce them to the important concept of self discovery. The struggles throughout the story Kaede goes through after loosing his mom is so inspiring and really exemplifies the importance of self dependence and self discovery. This book really makes you reflect on the question where is home and will open your mind and really examine what do home and family mean to you and where do you feel you belong?
We will definitely consider adding this title to our JFiction collection at the library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.
This book will really open minds for children across the world and will in my opinion introduce them to the important concept of self discovery. The struggles throughout the story Kaede goes through after loosing his mom is so inspiring and really exemplifies the importance of self dependence and self discovery. This book really makes you reflect on the question where is home and will open your mind and really examine what do home and family mean to you and where do you feel you belong?
We will definitely consider adding this title to our JFiction collection at the library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.
November 14, 2019
“If you ask me,” he’d said as we made our way toward the temple from the train station, “home isn’t really an apartment, or house, or where your family lives. It can be, but I think it’s more a collection of things like that. Like a well you fill up over time. Bits and pieces collected from all around you, the places you like best. Things you know down to their bones, people you can always find because you know they’ll be there-those count, too. And all that stuff, taken together and piled up inside that well, is basically home.’
And this book might just be one of those things I call home.
And this book might just be one of those things I call home.
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April 14, 2021I couldn't finish this book unfortunately. I chose it because it was a Silver Birch nominee, but I didn't enjoy how the author spoke through a 9 year old character and made their dialogue totally unrealistic. To me, the best junior fiction writers create characters that think and speak according to their age, yet still wind a story around them that is captivating and keeps the interest of even an adult reader!
October 22, 2020
Elsie Chapman is Canadian and Japanese like Kaede and her love for Vancour and Tokyo come through in this book. This is an interesting book because it's easy to feel compassion for Kaede, but then he keeps making horrible decisions. There are a lot of readers who will identify with his contradictory desires for connection and self-preservation. Recommended.
Read more at Bookish Adventures.
Read more at Bookish Adventures.
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February 11, 2019Okay I read a draft of this and I really loved it. It’s about brothers and grieving and being hurt and finding home when your old home has been ripped from you. It is sweet and I liked it so much.
October 29, 2021
Thanks for the recommendation, Carebear! Shoma is the best big brother EVER. 4.5 stars
December 28, 2018
Completely and utterly perfect. Sign me up, I'm now officially an Elsie Chapman fan.
July 1, 2019
It would seem that the universe is sending me a message since I've recently stumbled upon a pile of books about finding one's way home or making one's home and blooming where one is planted. No matter one's age, perhaps this is something we always deal with especially when we've moved from one place to another at one time or the other. Seventh grader Kaede Hirano--his name means Maple in Japanese--has had a hard time dealing with his mother's death. The two were close, and he has not been able to get past his anger, making his final year of middle school less than successful. In order to have a chance to move on to eighth grade, Kaede has been assigned to write a paper and collect memorabilia for a project on the meaning of home. After his father, a famous photographer, invites him to visit Japan, the place of his birth, for three weeks, he decides that it might provide a chance to get some answers to questions about family and home and reconnect with the man. Although he's been living in Vancouver with his grandfather, the two of them barely know each other. To his surprise, his father isn't at the Tokyo airport to meet him; instead, his older stepbrother Shoma picks him up. Shoma takes him home and shows him the sights, but Kaede is determined to get his answers and reconnect with his father. Even while Shoma is building up trust in Kaede and explaining why he himself hasn't been in contact, Kaede is plotting a desperate act that will betray that trust. The story captures many aspects of Tokyo while also featuring a father who is so distant that he seems to have forgotten that he ever had any children. While I wondered about his choices and didn't necessarily applaud them, I also know how time and distance make it easy to keep others at arm's length while we become consumed by our jobs and our careers, sometimes forgetting what matters. Although the end of this story is predictable, I still enjoyed the story and much of the writing, which left me feeling hopeful and reminded me that forgiveness is possible. Kaede and Shoma are truly sorry for the mistakes they've made whereas their father is clearly clueless about his responsibilities to his sons or his family.
April 14, 2025
7th-grade Kaede has experienced a lot of heartbreak in his life. After his parents split up, he and his mom move from Japan to Vancouver, leaving his dad and an older half-brother behind. Kaede is especially close to his mom, but she is tragically killed in a car wreck. Instead of Kaede's father, a well-known photographer in Japan, helping his son pick up the pieces, Kaede moves in with his grandfather.
At the beginning of the story, we learn that Kaede has recently been acting out by fighting at school, commiting vandalism, and assaulting one of his best friends, impairing his vision. This antisocial behavior stems from his anger toward the man who killed his mother when he was distracted by his cellphone. Kaede is also not doing well in school and in danger of having to repeat 7th grade. When summer hits, the school requires Kaede to complete a project detailing what home means to him. Because he no longer has a mother and his father rarely reaches out, he feels lost. He also wonders why his half brother, Shoma, has been nonexistent in his life since he moved to Vancouver.
Feeling lost about what to with Kaede, Grandpa makes an arrangement to send Kaede to Japan to spend three weeks with his father. Rather than Dad being at the airport, Shoma is there to pick up his half brother. As if he hasn't been disappointed enough, Kaede learns his dad is on an assignment and can't be reached by phone, unsure of when his father will return. Shoma takes in Kaede at his apartment and the brothers begin to bond, though the younger boy wonders if his older brother will disappear again after the three weeks are up.
While I liked many aspects of the story, there were times I had some difficulty with the protagonist's sophisticated thought process. It felt like he was older than 12 because of his maturity. Amazon classifies the book for 8-11 year olds (3rd-4th grade), which also seemed off. I tthink this book, while excellent, is more appropriate for 12-13 year olds.
At the beginning of the story, we learn that Kaede has recently been acting out by fighting at school, commiting vandalism, and assaulting one of his best friends, impairing his vision. This antisocial behavior stems from his anger toward the man who killed his mother when he was distracted by his cellphone. Kaede is also not doing well in school and in danger of having to repeat 7th grade. When summer hits, the school requires Kaede to complete a project detailing what home means to him. Because he no longer has a mother and his father rarely reaches out, he feels lost. He also wonders why his half brother, Shoma, has been nonexistent in his life since he moved to Vancouver.
Feeling lost about what to with Kaede, Grandpa makes an arrangement to send Kaede to Japan to spend three weeks with his father. Rather than Dad being at the airport, Shoma is there to pick up his half brother. As if he hasn't been disappointed enough, Kaede learns his dad is on an assignment and can't be reached by phone, unsure of when his father will return. Shoma takes in Kaede at his apartment and the brothers begin to bond, though the younger boy wonders if his older brother will disappear again after the three weeks are up.
While I liked many aspects of the story, there were times I had some difficulty with the protagonist's sophisticated thought process. It felt like he was older than 12 because of his maturity. Amazon classifies the book for 8-11 year olds (3rd-4th grade), which also seemed off. I tthink this book, while excellent, is more appropriate for 12-13 year olds.
May 30, 2025
The MC is twelve, but he reasons and has the thought processes of a forty-five year old psychologist/philosopher. This was extremely unrealistic and, in turn, would make the story mostly unrelatable to Middle Grade aged readers (8-12 years old).
Twelve is sometimes considered the youngest age for Young Adult books, not that I agree with that, and I was thinking maybe this book was supposed to be YA, so I went to Edelweiss to see what the publisher's page said and there wasn't one. I'm glad I read the acknowledgments because there she states this book is her "first Middle Grade". With seven editors listed one would think someone would have realized there was very little MG content. There was also a reference to prostitutes and red light districts. Good grief.
Then I was thinking even if the MC was written as sixteen, and the book considered YA, it still wouldn't have worked well because the forty-five year old guy would still be hanging out in his head. The author previously wrote Young Adult books and I might read one to see if her teenage characters are forty-somethings disguised as high schoolers as well.
The reason given for the MC physically hurting his best friend was convoluted even for an adult let alone a preteen, and the ending was too perfect and too easy with not a consequence to be found; and he did some pretty awful things.
No matter what the author thinks... this is not Middle Grade.
The funny thing is she's not a bad writer and could probably write some decent adult literature.
Twelve is sometimes considered the youngest age for Young Adult books, not that I agree with that, and I was thinking maybe this book was supposed to be YA, so I went to Edelweiss to see what the publisher's page said and there wasn't one. I'm glad I read the acknowledgments because there she states this book is her "first Middle Grade". With seven editors listed one would think someone would have realized there was very little MG content. There was also a reference to prostitutes and red light districts. Good grief.
Then I was thinking even if the MC was written as sixteen, and the book considered YA, it still wouldn't have worked well because the forty-five year old guy would still be hanging out in his head. The author previously wrote Young Adult books and I might read one to see if her teenage characters are forty-somethings disguised as high schoolers as well.
The reason given for the MC physically hurting his best friend was convoluted even for an adult let alone a preteen, and the ending was too perfect and too easy with not a consequence to be found; and he did some pretty awful things.
No matter what the author thinks... this is not Middle Grade.
The funny thing is she's not a bad writer and could probably write some decent adult literature.
July 9, 2020
3.5 Stars
What does it mean when the place you were born in feels both strange and not strange? When it's almost eight thousand kilometers across the ocean yet still swims around in your heart, somehow close?
Home is made up of those things I know will always be there for me.
What is home? For many, myself included, it is a very simple, straightforward question. For others, "home" is a confusing, complex word that is hard to define. Having worked with and taught many sojourners, "home" seems to be both an elusive concept and ever-evolving. A concept that means something different to each person, each life journey. Elsie Chapman tackles this concept in her middle grade novel All the Ways Home.
In this novel, Kaede's journey as a Japanese born, Canadian raised 7th grader spirals as tragedy strikes his already complex life. A summer trip to Japan to visit his father brings both expected and unexpected outcomes.
Many of the TCKs (third culture kids) I teach will enjoy this story, especially my Japanese students. Having lived in Japan myself, I enjoyed the many references to famous locales and everyday items like konbinis, the luck of five yen coins, okonomiyaki, and vending machines. However, aside from the references, the story is slow moving at times with a significant part told through reflective letters. In my opinion, more action is needed to sustain most middle grade readers. Recommended GR 7-8.
What does it mean when the place you were born in feels both strange and not strange? When it's almost eight thousand kilometers across the ocean yet still swims around in your heart, somehow close?
Home is made up of those things I know will always be there for me.
What is home? For many, myself included, it is a very simple, straightforward question. For others, "home" is a confusing, complex word that is hard to define. Having worked with and taught many sojourners, "home" seems to be both an elusive concept and ever-evolving. A concept that means something different to each person, each life journey. Elsie Chapman tackles this concept in her middle grade novel All the Ways Home.
In this novel, Kaede's journey as a Japanese born, Canadian raised 7th grader spirals as tragedy strikes his already complex life. A summer trip to Japan to visit his father brings both expected and unexpected outcomes.
Many of the TCKs (third culture kids) I teach will enjoy this story, especially my Japanese students. Having lived in Japan myself, I enjoyed the many references to famous locales and everyday items like konbinis, the luck of five yen coins, okonomiyaki, and vending machines. However, aside from the references, the story is slow moving at times with a significant part told through reflective letters. In my opinion, more action is needed to sustain most middle grade readers. Recommended GR 7-8.
March 30, 2021
3.5 stars. Enjoyed, but didn't love it. Maybe as a kid I would have? And there's some really beautiful reflection on home and what it means... but ultimately, the book felt a little single-minded. There could have been so much more in Kaede's story - grief, loss, family, distance - that felt absent, pushed out by this one single theme.
Additionally, some of the premise felt contrived and unrealistic? I mean, I have never, in my many years being involved in education in Canada, both as a student and, now, an educator, heard of kids actually being assigned homework over the summer, especially not homework that would be submitted and then have some bearing on any of your marks the following September. It annoyed me that the author would choose to set the story up with something that doesn't actually happen in the real world. I mean, maybe BC is different, but I kind of doubt it. Andalso, I know there are terrible educators around, but like, the kid just lost his mom in a tragic car accident and his teachers are piling on the pressure and threatening to keep him back a year? Yeah, no.
Anyway. I know I often get hung up on these sorts of technicalities that are actually a very small part of the story. I did enjoy the setting - Japan felt exciting and vibrant and I maybe actually wouldn't mind going to visit after reading this book. And the story of two brothers reconnecting was beautiful. The ending ties up in a pretty, neat bow, which I know many kids appreciate.
Additionally, some of the premise felt contrived and unrealistic? I mean, I have never, in my many years being involved in education in Canada, both as a student and, now, an educator, heard of kids actually being assigned homework over the summer, especially not homework that would be submitted and then have some bearing on any of your marks the following September. It annoyed me that the author would choose to set the story up with something that doesn't actually happen in the real world. I mean, maybe BC is different, but I kind of doubt it. Andalso, I know there are terrible educators around, but like, the kid just lost his mom in a tragic car accident and his teachers are piling on the pressure and threatening to keep him back a year? Yeah, no.
Anyway. I know I often get hung up on these sorts of technicalities that are actually a very small part of the story. I did enjoy the setting - Japan felt exciting and vibrant and I maybe actually wouldn't mind going to visit after reading this book. And the story of two brothers reconnecting was beautiful. The ending ties up in a pretty, neat bow, which I know many kids appreciate.
December 30, 2021
I threw this in my library bag on a whim, almost as an afterthought-- oh cool, a novel set in Japan I haven't read yet.
I was wrong to have so thought so little of it, for though it is slim, it carries a powerful emotional punch.
Chapman remarkably captures Kaede's swirling torrent of emotions-- grief, regret, guilt, anger, resentment, desperation, anxiety, fear, self-defense, hope-- each leading on to the next and back again as fast as neurons flying across synapses. Granted, I haven't read much YA, so maybe this isn't the feat that I make it out to be, but it strikes me as quite a literary accomplishment to be able to so easily put the preteen's mind into words. After all, half the time they themselves struggle to do so!
Another thing that I really liked about this novel is that while it was set in Japan, it wasn't really about Japan. It wasn't a travelogue, where Japan itself is a beguiling, befuddling and bewitching seductress and the wide-eyed foreigner is awestruck by its charms. Chapman didn't try to cram in every iconic Tokyo tourist trap or every amazing meal she's had there; she included only what really made sense for the characters to do/eat/see.
What really got me though? How gripping the climax was and how satisfying the resolution felt. That's always my favorite in any genre.
I was wrong to have so thought so little of it, for though it is slim, it carries a powerful emotional punch.
Chapman remarkably captures Kaede's swirling torrent of emotions-- grief, regret, guilt, anger, resentment, desperation, anxiety, fear, self-defense, hope-- each leading on to the next and back again as fast as neurons flying across synapses. Granted, I haven't read much YA, so maybe this isn't the feat that I make it out to be, but it strikes me as quite a literary accomplishment to be able to so easily put the preteen's mind into words. After all, half the time they themselves struggle to do so!
Another thing that I really liked about this novel is that while it was set in Japan, it wasn't really about Japan. It wasn't a travelogue, where Japan itself is a beguiling, befuddling and bewitching seductress and the wide-eyed foreigner is awestruck by its charms. Chapman didn't try to cram in every iconic Tokyo tourist trap or every amazing meal she's had there; she included only what really made sense for the characters to do/eat/see.
What really got me though? How gripping the climax was and how satisfying the resolution felt. That's always my favorite in any genre.
January 17, 2021
Kaede has lost his mother, and he doesn't feel connected to his grandfather, who has come to live with and look after him. Kaede's loss has made him lash out in violent ways, and he may also have to repeat his grade at school. Kaede is sent to Japan for three weeks over the summer, to be with his father and older brother, neither of which he has seen since their family broke up years ago. He has also been given one more chance to pass, if he can do an amazing job on a project about what home means to him. Will Kaede be able to find the answers he needs to ever feel a sense of home again?
The author does a good job showing the turmoil Kaede is feeling with all the changes in his life. She also does a good job of giving the reader a taste of what it is like to see and live in various parts of Japan. Topics in the book include death of a parent, grief, anger, and family relationships.
The author does a good job showing the turmoil Kaede is feeling with all the changes in his life. She also does a good job of giving the reader a taste of what it is like to see and live in various parts of Japan. Topics in the book include death of a parent, grief, anger, and family relationships.
February 4, 2019
Outstanding MG about long-term grief and parental loss. Kaede is struggling with the death of his mom a year earlier. It's led to unfamiliar and uncomfortable living situations with a grandfather he barely knows, who's stepped in to care for him in the absence of his parents. His father lives in Japan and has been estranged for nearly a decade. But when Kaede's struggles at school and in his community lead to trouble, he's invited to spend the summer with the family he hardly remembers. Hoping for a thread of stability, Kaede hops on a plane to Tokyo with a small backpack and a school project on the topic of "home" that will determine whether or not he promotes to grade 8. In a city that holds ghosts of his past, Kaede gets to know his big brother and wonders about the father who is mysteriously still absent. Can he put together enough pieces to define home, and himself?
July 7, 2019
Kaede lives with his maternal grandfather after his mom died in a car accident, but when he receives word from Japan that his biological father would like him to spend the summer there, it seems like a good idea in the aftermath of his behavioral problems. Except his father is off on a photo shoot, and his older brother takes him under his wing, but Kaede doesn't know how he'll finish his school project on "home" without the answers he craves from his dad. The Tokyo setting is lush with descriptors that make the reader want to eat the food, see the lights, and meet the people there. Kaede is a troubled kid for a good reason, and the reader cannot help but feel sorry for him, though sometimes his voice seems to slip out of that of a 12-year-old boy. His brother is a well-rounded character, and the ending is solid. A good middle grade novel.
July 11, 2019
This was a delightful book that followed Kaede's journey of discovering where he belongs, what home means, and what family means to him following the death of his mother. I think his search was one everyone could relate to in some way while also examining belonging in terms of being an immigrant. It was a moving, easy-to-read story and you felt as if you were exploring Japan alongside Kaede because of the wonderful descriptions of his surroundings and (possibly most importantly) the food! It was a lively, vivid journey the reader joins Kaede upon and I also loved how he and his brother ultimately bond over music. I also enjoyed the writing style of this book, which including diary entrees/letters Kaede was writing for a school project. It was a very satisfying middle grade read and I would recommend it to its target audience and older readers too!
July 12, 2019
MY THOUGHTS:
I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
This is a middle-grade novel for ages 8-12, grades 3 to seven. This is a middle-grade debut for this accomplished author. She also wrote Along the Indigo, coedited A Thousand Beginnings and Endings and wrote the Dualed series.
Whew, what an emotional roller coaster ride. I think every emotion I possess was activated while reading this quick read. The main character will shake your resolve and squeeze your heart.
I highly recommend this book to both tweens and adults alike. Strong prose, excellent plotting, fast-paced, and the characters... so well-developed and layered and complicated and faulted and real.
This writer has gotten better and better with each book she's written and I can't wait to see what she's going to put out next.
I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
This is a middle-grade novel for ages 8-12, grades 3 to seven. This is a middle-grade debut for this accomplished author. She also wrote Along the Indigo, coedited A Thousand Beginnings and Endings and wrote the Dualed series.
Whew, what an emotional roller coaster ride. I think every emotion I possess was activated while reading this quick read. The main character will shake your resolve and squeeze your heart.
I highly recommend this book to both tweens and adults alike. Strong prose, excellent plotting, fast-paced, and the characters... so well-developed and layered and complicated and faulted and real.
This writer has gotten better and better with each book she's written and I can't wait to see what she's going to put out next.
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