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Halfway Normal
By Barbara Dee
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Table of Contents
About The Book
“A lovely, heartbreaking, warm, funny, and ultimately hopeful map of the way back home.” —Jordan Sonnenblick, author of Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie
A cancer survivor must readjust to “normal” middle school life in this “powerful story about surviving and thriving” (School Library Journal, starred review) from the author of Star-Crossed and Truth or Dare.
Norah Levy has just completed two years of treatment for leukemia and is ready to go back to the “real world” of middle school. She knows it’ll be tricky—but like the Greek mythological characters she read about while she was sick, Norah’s up for any challenge.
But seventh grade turns out to be harder than she thought. Norah’s classmates don’t know what to make of her. Her best friend, Harper, tries to be there for her, but she doesn’t get it, really—and is hanging out with a new group of girls. Norah’s other good friend, Silas, is avoiding her. What’s that about, anyway?
When Norah is placed with the eighth graders for math and science, she meets Griffin, a cute boy who encourages her love of Greek mythology and art. And Norah decides not to tell him her secret—that she was “that girl” who had cancer. But when something happens to make secret-keeping impossible, Norah must figure out a way to share her story.
But how do you explain something to others that you can’t explain to yourself? Can Nora take her cue from her favorite Greek myth? And then, once she finds the words, can she move forward with a whole new “normal?”
A cancer survivor must readjust to “normal” middle school life in this “powerful story about surviving and thriving” (School Library Journal, starred review) from the author of Star-Crossed and Truth or Dare.
Norah Levy has just completed two years of treatment for leukemia and is ready to go back to the “real world” of middle school. She knows it’ll be tricky—but like the Greek mythological characters she read about while she was sick, Norah’s up for any challenge.
But seventh grade turns out to be harder than she thought. Norah’s classmates don’t know what to make of her. Her best friend, Harper, tries to be there for her, but she doesn’t get it, really—and is hanging out with a new group of girls. Norah’s other good friend, Silas, is avoiding her. What’s that about, anyway?
When Norah is placed with the eighth graders for math and science, she meets Griffin, a cute boy who encourages her love of Greek mythology and art. And Norah decides not to tell him her secret—that she was “that girl” who had cancer. But when something happens to make secret-keeping impossible, Norah must figure out a way to share her story.
But how do you explain something to others that you can’t explain to yourself? Can Nora take her cue from her favorite Greek myth? And then, once she finds the words, can she move forward with a whole new “normal?”
Product Details
- Publisher: Aladdin (September 5, 2017)
- Length: 256 pages
- ISBN13: 9781481478533
- Grades: 4 - 8
- Ages: 9 - 13
- Lexile ® 620L The Lexile reading levels have been certified by the Lexile developer, MetaMetrics®
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Awards and Honors
- Keystone to Reading Book Award Reading List (PA)
- CBC/NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Book
- ILA Young Adults' Choices
- Kansas NEA Reading Circle List Junior Title
- Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award Master List (VT)
- Black-Eyed Susan Book Award Nominee (MD)
- Mark Twain Award Final Nominee (MO)
- Wisconsin State Reading Association's Reading List
- South Carolina Book Award Nominee
Resources and Downloads
High Resolution Images
- Book Cover Image (jpg): Halfway Normal eBook 9781481478533
- Author Photo (jpg): Barbara Dee Carolyn Simpson(0.1 MB)
Any use of an author photo must include its respective photo credit