Sunny

Track #3

by Jason Reynolds

Sunny tries to shine despite his troubled past in this third novel in the critically acclaimed Track series from National Book Award finalist Jason Reynolds.

Ghost. Patina. Sunny. Lu. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds, with personalities that are explosive when they clash. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school track team—a team that could qualify them for the Junior Olympics. They all have a lot of lose, but they all have a lot to prove, not only to each other, but to themselves. Sunny is the main character in this novel, the third of four books in Jason Reynold’s electrifying middle grade series.

Sunny is just that—sunny. Always ready with a goofy smile and something nice to say, Sunny is the chillest dude on the Defenders team. But Sunny’s life hasn’t always been sun beamy-bright. You see, Sunny is a murderer. Or at least he thinks of himself that way. His mother died giving birth to him, and based on how Sunny’s dad treats him—ignoring him, making Sunny call him Darryl, never “Dad”—it’s no wonder Sunny thinks he’s to blame. It seems the only thing Sunny can do right in his dad’s eyes is win first place ribbons running the mile, just like his mom did. But Sunny doesn’t like running, never has. So he stops. Right in the middle of a race.

With his relationship with his dad now worse than ever, the last thing Sunny wants to do is leave the other newbies—his only friends—behind. But you can’t be on a track team and not run. So Coach asks Sunny what he wants to do. Sunny’s answer? Dance. Yes, dance. But you also can’t be on a track team and dance. Then, in a stroke of genius only Jason Reynolds can conceive, Sunny discovers a track event that encompasses the hard hits of hip-hop, the precision of ballet, and the showmanship of dance as a whole: the discus throw. As Sunny practices the discus, learning when to let go at just the right time, he’ll let go of everything that’s been eating him up inside, perhaps just in time.

Genres: Middle Grade, Sports, Realistic Fiction, Young Adult, Audiobook, Fiction, Contemporary

208 pages, Paperback

First published April 10, 2018

About the author

Jason Reynolds is an American author of novels and poetry for young adult and middle-grade audience. After earning a BA in English from The University of Maryland, College Park, Jason Reynolds moved to Brooklyn, New York, where you can often find him walking the four blocks from the train to his apartment talking to himself. Well, not really talking to himself, but just repeating character names and plot lines he thought of on the train, over and over again, because he’s afraid he’ll forget it all before he gets home.

Reviews

[Jen Petro-Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't think Jason Reynolds can write a bad book.

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This author has such a gift for creating characters with unique voices. He doesn't write stereotypes, he writes people. I don't generally read middle grade books, but I think this author is special. I wish that he had been around when I was a kid. The narrator of the audio book was also special. He got the beats and the rhythms of the language just right.

[Rachel L · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love books by Jason Reynolds. I feel like he speaks to all those "weird" outcast kids who felt like they had to stay in their box. Reynolds shows them they don't have to.

Seriously everyone, if you haven't read a Jason Reynolds book, you need to get your life in order.

I listened to the audio version of this book and highly recommend it as it is performed really well

[steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the audio book narrated by Guy Lockard*

This book was FANTASTIC. It is the 3rd book in the Track series and it follows 12-year-old Sunny Lancaster, the #1 middle distance runner of the Defenders. Sunny does one thing on the team, he runs and he wins, he runs and he wins, he runs and he wins, he runs and he wins. But Sunny doesn’t particularly like running, instead, he wants to do something different.

I will admit that I have read the other two books in this series and have really enjoyed them so that might have (slightly) influenced my enjoyment of this book but not really. Jason Reynolds has a way of writing kids as well, like kids and I can totally see why he has won multiple awards for his books. The four kids in this series are impulsive, loud, funny, quick to react, loyal etc. But Sunny…well I've loved him since book #1 and I’m not sure if it’s because I listened to this rather than read it like I did with the previous two but I absolutely, positively fell in love with Sunny even more in this book.

Sunny is a fantastic character and a joy to encounter in children's literature. He’s eccentric, his thoughts are all over the place, and he is so full of energy that sometimes it just gets away from him. Sunny is home schooled and his entire world is his father (to whom he doesn’t exactly have a warm and loving relationship with), his family friend/teacher Aurelia and his running team, the Defenders. That’s it. And you know what, getting a glimpse into Sunny’s entire world (as small and compact as it was) was delightful. Sunny reminded me of so many kids I know today as well as kids I grew up with - there were quite a few times I laughed aloud while listening to this. The book is similar in style to the others in the series that all the events take place within a week but unlike the others it is in diary format in which Sunny writes about his fears, worries, thoughts etc. I usually am not a fan of diary formatted books but it works here. If you want to read about middle schoolers acting and thinking and behaving like middle schoolers, then read this. You won’t regret this.

*A note about the narration. Guy Lockard did a WONDERFUL, FANTASTIC, SUPERB job narrating the book. His tone, his melody, his inflection, his pauses, the way he lets his voice go up and down in pitch as necessary. He really brought Sunny to life and I think a good reason why I enjoyed this book so much was due to his narration. There was a bonus track after the book ended in which both Jason and Guy spoke about this narration. I learned that the two men grew up together in the same neighborhood, had the same friends, they even lived in New York at the same time in their early twenties to pursue their passions of writing (Jason) and acting (Guy). Jason said that when he needed someone to narrate this book (and book #1 Ghost for which Guy won an Honor Odyssey Award for best audiobook), Guy was his first choice. Jason said that he writes the way he speaks and he needed someone who grew up in the same neighborhood and used the same speech pattern as him to really GET Sunny’s voice. And Guy completely filled and surpassed that expectation. I might listen to book #1 now even though I’ve already read it, just because I enjoyed Guy’s work in this one so much.

[disco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t know what we did to deserve Jason Reynolds but I’m so thankful we have him. He gives a voice to so many that don’t have one. Sunny made me laugh while crying so many times. His thought process is sporadic and untamed in a way that only some can relate to. Guy Lockard was the perfect choice for the audio book. This was just brilliant.

[Bookishrealm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been meaning to finish the Track series for a while. Though I've read Ghost and Patina at least two times each, this was my first time picking up Sunny. Strikingly different from the other books in the series and the lowest rated of the series, this book proved to me, once again, the brilliance that is Jason Reynolds. Unlike the previous books, Sunny is written in diary format with the reader learning about events after they've happened as opposed to the real time experiences in the other titles. Onomatopoeia is significantly used as a literary device for Sunny's experiences giving the book a very different, almost erratic vibe. It's jarring and it's different and it's weird. And that's the purpose. As stated by Reynolds in the authors note, this book is for the weirdos, the kids who are different. As a result, this book is supposed to feel significantly different from the other titles. Sunny is a character that I would have connected to as a child. It would have healed that part of me that felt shame for being different. His experiences on the team, the grief he feels due to the loss of his mother, the complex relationship he has with his father are beautifully woven together to create this amazing book. The rhythm of it was powerful, raw, and emotional.

[DianaRose · Rating 5 out of 5]

sunny is the third novel in reynolds’ track series, and despite the title, and it being full of goofy and quirky moments, it’s perhaps the saddest and darkest so far.

sunny thinks he’s a murderer because his mom died giving birth to him, and thinks that’s why his dad (who he refers to by his name daryl) hates him; the only one he confides in is his diary, which is how we learn about sunny.

of course, things get better in that beautiful jason reynolds way — sunny has a few open hearts with the adults in his life, he gets to participate in the discus throw instead of running (which he tells coach he hates!), and finds friends who understand and defend him in the newbies. most importantly? he knows he ISN’T a murderer.

i also listened to the audio, and whew!!, guy lockard is a narrating genius!! even jason reynolds acknowledged his genius and their friendship at the end of the audiobook 💖

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is written in Dear Diary format. Sigh.

I can't stand Dear Diary format; I find it overly self-aware to the point where it veers into uncomfortably self-conscious. Case in point:

Dear Diary,

The only thing weirder than me is my teacher creature. Aurelia. I know I said she might feel like she has to introduce herself to you again, even though she's been around as long as you have, but I just realized that it's been years, so maybe you don't remember her. Maybe it's you who needs the again-introduction.

Sighhhhhh.

I suppose I could enumerate all the many ways in which I find that type of narration incredibly frustrating. Or maybe I'm old and out of touch. But goodness: unless you're the Dowager Duchess, and your diary entries come after a series of hilarious letters (so the actual details are already set) and their purpose is to provide shading and context instead of all the narration - maybe skip the format? It's nails-on-a-chalkboard grating. We all know you're talking to us, not the diary. No one writes in a diary like this.

Anyway, the actual story is fine, even though it's simple and straightforward and short (maybe too short), and I like Sunny's voice when he's not pretending the reader doesn't exist.

And there is one fabulous paragraph:

I asked him if he was okay, and he just nodded. Then he bent over, his puzzled face kissing my mother's puzzled cheek, then swiped the puzzle box off the table. All the peace, but none of the pieces.

If only the entire book was this inventive, this delightfully experimental, this playful with words - this focused on voice and writing instead of an imaginary, artificial audience.

[Suad Shamma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm so confused. I don't know what went wrong here. I'm actually a little annoyed with this book. I feel like the quality has decreased from one book to the next. Ghost was such a great book, but I can't say the same about the rest of the series.

This one was the worst so far. It's such a shame because I was really looking forward to Sunny's story. He was always one of my favorite characters, and I had such high hopes.

It was written in "Dear Diary" style, and unfortunately, I found Sunny's narrative voice to be very annoying. And all those sounds "boom, tish, rrrah, bla", I just couldn't take it.

The story would have been so much more touching and emotionally charged had it been written in verse form or regular narrative, but all these diary entries were...kind of lame.

There were a few gems in there, and that doesn't surprise me because I know what Jason Reynolds is capable of. I give it a 2 stars, because I'm biased and I love Reynolds. But in truth, I'm not sure it deserves more than a star.

[laura (bbliophile) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so, so much.

[Maren’s Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️ Sunny is by far my fave of this very unique and lovable (yet so relatable) track team. He marches to his own beat, including even the way in which the character narrates through diary entries, and is just such a shining star in his own right.

This series continues to be fantastic!

[Abby Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another hit in the track series. I love this series and the audiobooks are just great. Sunny's kind of a weirdo. He's the master of the mile on his track team and always wins his races, but he doesn't really enjoy it. He runs for his mom who died when he was born. She ran and his dad has always told Sunny that the way to honor her would be to run. But Sunny's done with running. He wants to dance instead. And he's afraid that he won't be allowed to stay on the track team with his friends if he's not running. So Coach comes up with a compromise: discus. Throwing the discus will allow Sunny to use some of those movements he loves from dance while still competing at track meets. But Sunny's never had to worry about being good at track - he always came in first at the mile. What if he's no good at this?

Jason Reynolds is a master of voice and he paints a portrait here of one of those kids who's just a little Too Much. Creative and wacky and unafraid to let his true self show, Sunny is definitely a weirdo. But as Reynolds says in the note at the end of this audiobook, we need to make space for the weirdos, too. I know kids like Sunny. It's great to see him in a book, embracing his weirdness.

And Guy Lockhart's narration! It's truly the perfect fit for this series. His narration of Ghost earned that audiobook an Odyssey Honor and I wouldn't be surprised if SUNNY follows suit. I didn't know that Reynolds and Lockhart are friends who have known each other since they were teenagers. In author and narrator notes at the end of this audiobook they both explain how they know each other and why Lockhart is a perfect fit for Reynolds's work: he knows him, he knows his particular voice, he knows these characters. It all adds up to a superb listening experience.

Highly recommended: if you have not already checked out the Track series, DO IT! I recommend the audiobooks. And while Ghost is the first book in the series, each book stands alone pretty nicely so don't be afraid to dive in wherever.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the third book of the "Track" tetralogy, the book focuses on the unique character Sunny. Sunny's mom died when she gave birth to him and he always feels like he is a "murderer" for his mother's death. He lives with his father who does not want him to call him dad because he feels like it brings too much pain without a mom. His mother always wanted to run the mile as a track runner so his dad feels like it is Sunny's responsibility to run for his mom. Sunny is exceptionally good at running the mile but he feels like he has lost interest in getting all those 1st place medals. Instead, he wants to dance, a place where he can be free and he can do whatever he want, without interference from other people. When his running coach hears that he is quitting, the coach persuades him to try throwing the discus. He reasons that to throw the discus, you have to twirl and you can throw as far as you can, without anyone stopping you. Sunny gets better and better and throwing the discus, so, Sunny tries it for the track and field meet. The last words we read from this book are,

I am not a murderer, I am not a hurricane, Nothing is wrong with me.

I'm going to scream it out and away...

And, SPUN!
Turned.
And turned.
And let go.

These last words are very powerful and also create a cliffhanger to whether he makes a good throw but I infer that he throws a very good throw because he lets out all the bad and good thoughts and emotions inside of him.

Even though this was a short book, it is a very heartwarming and touching book. Jason Reynolds, a New York Times bestseller author, also has written All-American Boys and Long Way Down, bost equally amazing as the 'Track" series. I also plan on reading the last book in the tetralogy.

[Agnė · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sunny, the third installment in the middle grade Track series, has a sweet story and a unique narrative voice full of sound effects, which is fittingly conveyed by Guy Lockard's audiobook narration.

However, just like reading the second book in the series, Patina , I was mostly bored. Sorry :( My favorite parts, once again, were track-related (practices and meets), but in Sunny they are few and far between. And the rest of the story, unfortunately, is rather slow and uneventful. Plus, I'm not a fan of Sunny's voice (or maybe the diary format?), though it's probably a personal preference.

[Daniel Qiu · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the most thought provoking book in the Track series for me. I'm not sure if it's my favorite, but it's the one that's made me think the most. I have read the two previous ones in the series, and what I liked about those two is that we really got to experience the running part of their lives, we got to meet a lot of interesting characters and feel like we were talking with and running with being with the Defenders, and this book doesn't really allow you to experience that. This is the part where I start criticizing the book, yay.

No offense to Sunny, but his life outside of the Defenders is kinda boring. He is in my opinion the blandest person in the Newbies (Sunny, Lu, Ghost and Patty), and although the dance offers a little interesting content, his life feels more like a memoir than a realistic fiction book meant to entertain. I mean it's a memoir in the way it's really boring. Aurelia and Darryl both have a undeveloped feel to the character that makes spending 60% of the book with feel strange. He is homeschooled, which isn't a bad thing, but at least in Patty we got to hear about her school and her social life, while Sunny gives a "old soul' type rundown of each day that is monotonous after a while. Maybe that's the type of person Sunny is, but to a certain extent a book is to entertain the reader and a boring character makes you want to read the book less. Ghost was full of him and the team, and although he and Sunny both have interesting and moving back stories/experiences, Ghosts feels more appealingly described and it seems more open. If the Defenders were featured more, and Aurelia and Darryl felt more developed emotionally and characteristically, I would like this book more.

I finished over 70% of this book reading in a humid swimming pool, pedaling on a cardio machine, so maybe the condition I was reading them in. To me the book felt like a repeat of the same dialogue and words and a couple dancing noise added in. I really loved the times when Sunny went to the hospital and helped the patients, it was really moving.

I really love eccentric stuff, and the editing and crossing out added to the text really got me. I like how even though he may be boring, his characteristics and traits are so clear and cut-out and he feels like a real life person. The random edits and self-conscious rant-speaking-happy talking is really helping me envision the character.

I do like the style overall with the diary entries and the author giving his entries a voice that sounded like the awkward, shy but still bursting with things to share. I was slightly confused by the cover page because in Ghost, Sunny was described as a really lanky and clumsy kid. In the cover he looked the same as the rest of the Newbies, did they all suddenly strike puberty and have super big growth spurts or something?

The track series has always felt like a smaller book/series in the way it doesn't feel super publicized or commercially made like Harry Potter and Percy Jackson, it felt like the author had written the book just for you and not to make you laugh, even though it does. The fact that at the end of the book they added Aurelia teasing Sunny about him liking Patty and him realizing it makes it feel like High School Musical with a non superpowery Heroes of Olympus, and I kind of had a bad feeling about Lu (the next book in the series) where everyone would be all mushy and romantic and it would be super predictable like the other teen series.

There are definitely great things about this book, and I will definitely read the sequel. The missing star is for the undeveloped characters of Darryl (I guess I can understand that because he's confusing and keeps things to himself) and Aurelia, and how repetitive and slightly boring the book and Sunny was. I would recommend this to someone who's interested more in the story and message of the book, but I read books for fun.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Edelweiss provided me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Sunny's story is very different than that of Ghost or Patina. First, his story is a series of diary entries--a diary he keeps to help control all the thoughts and ideas swirling around in his head. And Sunny's brain doesn't process things like other kids (although...now that I'm typing that...his brain probably processes things like A LOT of other kids)--he jumps from thought to thought, from subject to subject, rhyming and playing with words and making noises.

And I'll admit--it took some getting used to. However...once my reader brain adjusted to Sunny's writer brain, it almost felt like the most personal of the three books so far. Maybe because Sunny's story is so sad, or maybe because we get the extreme Sunny version. Honest and unfiltered.

[Aliza Werner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gobbled SUNNY up from cover to cover this morning. Number 3 in the series makes these kids' lives more real every time. Run. Dance. Throw. Just move. Jason Reynolds, you can do no wrong! Wih-winner!

[Bruna Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Segundo livro da #BingoLitNegra terminado! Ouvi o audiobook no final tem uma mini entrevista com o Jason Reynolds e o narrador, Guy Lockard, que são MIGOS de infância <3 A narração é realmente incrível (ele ganhou um prêmio pela narração de Fantasma, o primeiro da série) e faz muita diferença na experiência de leitura do livro.
Sunny faz parte da equipe de corrida, só que ele não quer mais correr, mas quer continuar na equipe. A alternativa que o treinador acha é lançamento de disco. Tudo para ele tem um ritmo e uma batida, ele ama dançar. Assim como nos outros dois livros da série, o protagonista tem um grande conflito familiar e no caso de Sunny é a morte da mãe quando ele nasceu. Ele e o pai - que ele não chama de "pai", só de "Darryl", tem um relacionamento distante e Sunny se julga culpado e um assassino por causa da morte da mãe.

POIS É. PESADO. Mas o Jason consegue discutir os assuntos mais difíceis, e que muitas vezes são ignorados em conversas com crianças/adolescentes, de um jeito fácil de acompanhar e que deixa claro a importância do diálogo. Esse é o quarto livro dele que leio e não tenho dúvidas que ele é um autor que realmente sabe se comunicar com crianças e adolescentes com uma voz única.

[Marta Cava]

Però com pot ser absolutament tant genial aquesta sèrie de llibres juvenils???

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast-paces both in its use of white space as Sunny writes in his diary and in how Reynolds keeps us moving through Sunny’s world where his birthday is coming up- which also means that it’s the day his mother died.

Sunny has to finally soon share with his coach and his father that he doesn’t want to run anymore- it is what his father wants because that’s what his mother did. But he wants to dance and Coach, being his usual awesome mentor self, recommends that Sunny throw discus.

It’s a quick read in the world of the others in the track series with some dance, some confessions, family drama, and a way to be able to stand up for yourself. A cool comparative story to the graphic novel Spinning.

Plus Reynolds note about him dancing because he knows you’re reading? Yes, give him all the awards to bring the sexy back to reading (not that it ever left)- just sayin’.

[Darla · Rating 5 out of 5]

The audio performance by Guy Lockard really shines and highlights Sunny's life in this third installment of the Track series. Reynolds has given each character their own unique voice and I am so glad I switched to audio after reading "Ghost" in print. Sunny has his own challenges to overcome, not the least of them blaming himself for the death of his mother at his birth. Sunny writes to his diary to get all of the noise out of his head and we get to know him as we hear/read the entries. His interactions with the track team push the narrative forward. They are all becoming old friends. Looking forward to spending more time with the team while listening to Lu's story.

[Stefani Sloma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh man. Sunny. I've been waiting for your book. Written entirely in diary entries, SUNNY is beautiful, sensitive, and an absolute masterpiece like all of Jason's books. I thought the way that Jason represents Sunny's love of music and dancing, the way that he sees the world, was really cool. I think this is my favorite of the series.

[Elijah]

it was good

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun book that realistically portrays the 12 year old mind of Sunny. I encourage you to get the audiobook read by Jason's friend forever, Guy Lockard. The high-energy/ADHD personality of Sunny is heard clearly.

Sunny only had his Dad at home, as his Mom died giving birth to him. This worries Sunny. Thankfully he has friends on his track club. But this is another pressure, since his Mom liked distance running and he feels 'stuck' in doing distance (the mile) to honor her. How about a switch to the Discus?

The story is told by Sunny writing in his Diary, who he has named "Diary", so he can talk to Diary as though they were a person. The hyperactive personality of Sunny doesn't feel like it realistically would ever be able to sit still long enough to get all these thoughts down. But as a reader, you just need to resolve this idiosyncrasy and just keep reading.

The small things that grow large in the mind of a 12 year old is well portrayed. This is a great book for this middle school age group of kids. But also for adults to remind them of the anxieties that this age group easily gains.

Another 5* book from Reynolds.
5* audio too.

[Skip · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very weak effort. Disliked the format of "Dear Diary" and Sunny's voice, which sounded fake/contrived. The book jumped all over the place, and because Sunny was homeschooled, there was little else to do but agonize over Sunny's problems at home. The only highlight was Sunny finally doing something just for herself. This series has really gone downhill.

[Desi A · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are just so wonderful. I’m sad they are so short!

I really appreciate how each book in the series has a *completely different* voice, but each one has a rhythmic, lyric quality to it (and this one in particular with Sunny’s emphasis on sound).

I was last on a track team at the exact age as these kids, and while I loved it and had dreams of success quashed by injury, I wish in retrospect I had let it be more of my life back then. I remember coach Jones making us all do things we didn’t necessarily want to do to help earn our keep on the team (OMG the 400 and 800 were the banes of my existence), and I don’t remember how or why I said I wanted to be a hurdler in 8th grade, but I got to, and I was good. Oh well.

The only other time running became a part of my identity was the year I had decided to try to run the 10-miler and my mom died unexpectedly about 6 weeks before the event but I decided to keep going and the running became a form of therapy, a way of pushing the grief from the inside out and when I ran the 10-miler I cried almost the whole last mile.

The kids in Reynolds’ books are all dealing with grief and anger and belonging and figuring out who they are, and running (or jumping or throwing) doesn’t solve all their problems, but it is there for them.

[Sarah Krajewski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sunny Lancaster is one of the fastest members of the Defenders track team. His race is the mile, and he always comes in 1st place. There’s one problem though. Sunny hates to run! He only does it because his father, Darryl, has always encouraged him to run to “make his mother proud.” Sunny feels guilty, for his mother passed away the day he was born. He feels responsible, even calling himself a murderer. Sunny lives his life for his mother, but soon he starts realizing that needs to start living for himself and do what he loves: dancing.

I originally planned to read this book, but then both copies were checked out by students. I didn’t want to wait for one to return, so I got the audiobook. I’m SO glad I did! Guy Lockard, who narrated Ghost and Rashad’s part in All American Boys, brought Sunny to life! I love Jason’s writing, but I know I wouldn’t have noticed all I did about Sunny without Guy becoming him. Time for another Odyssey award!

[Ashlee Tominey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my goodness this was fantastic! Sunny is WEIRD (his words). And he has so much he carries around and stuffs down. The story is set up as diary entries and it works well. We learn so much about him as he starts to unleash the words and feelings, even switching events in track meets.

Guy Lockard was an amazing narrator and really brought Sunny to life. So far I think this is my favorite in the Track series.

[Kari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't sparkle for me as much as Ghost and Patina but there's a scene close to the end that got me right in the feels and reminded me how great Jason Reynolds is. I am not sure that the kids who liked Ghost and Patina will find Sunny quite as relatable but I hope they do.

[Kathy Mathey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one might be my favorite ~ maybe because it's Mother's Day and it struck that chord. Love the universal message that we all are trying to find our niche, our place, our people.