If your reading preference is more toward the contemporary/ realistic fiction side then look no further than HIDDEN TRUTHS. Author Elly Schwartz took 22 years creating this engaging story before finally bringing it to middle grade readers.

Book Birthday: 10/31/2023 Page Count: 272

Friends since second grade, sixth graders Eric and Dani are very different, but always count on each other for support and understanding. They love donuts, comic books, and camping on the cape.

After a terrible accident that leaves Dani with a broken leg and nerve damage, their whole world turns upside down Eric blames himself as he just might have left the camper stove on overnight causing an explosion. His ADHD tendencies to forget always cause him trouble.

Unfortunately for Dani she had just made the middle school baseball team, the only girl to do so. Now her passion to ever play again is in jeopardy.

Told in alternating viewpoints, Eric and Dani’s voices are masterfully portrayed. Eric searches for the truth about the accident while Dani, stuck in the hospital, finds it difficult to forgive. Friendship and what it takes to keep the bond alive is embedded at every turn.

The truth is HIDDEN TRUTHS is my favorite realistic fiction read this year.

FIVE MORE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT: HIDDEN TRUTHS by Elly Swartz

1. I’ve worked with many kids labeled as ADHD and Eric’s thoughts, emotions, and actions were spot on. It was fantastic to see him discovering that he is more than a label and learns how to define himself in new ways.
2. Friendships often reveal truths about what was and what is to become. Both Eric and Dani discover this revelation with their new friends. A helpful result for readers in their own friendships.
3. Eric talks to God. He wishes for Dani to get better in exchange for keeping his room clean or being nice to his sister. A common and realistic action teens and preteens will often turn to when wanting something important. It fit perfectly in the plot.
4. The parents were supportive, but it was the kids (both the main characters and others) who eventually came to the perfect resolutions and conclusions about being a friend.
5. I know a book is good when I am carrying it with me wherever I go so I can enjoy one more chapter with each pause in my day.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Elly Swartz grew up in Yardley, Pennsylvania. She studied psychology at Boston University and received her law degree from Georgetown University Law Center. Elly lives in Massachusetts and is happily married with two grown sons, a beagle named Lucy, and a pup named Baxter Bean. Finding Perfect, called “a clear, moving portrayal of obsessive-compulsive disorder” by Publishers Weekly, was her debut novel. She is also the author of Smart Cookie and Give and Take, novels for middle grade readers.

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