2016
WISE Score
Amazon
Three girls, one baton-twirling contest, and a whole lot of 'my dad left me' baggage handled with actual grace and humor.
4.6
4.6View →Our reviews and ratings are 100% unbiased, but as an Amazon Associate, Screenwise earns an affiliate fee if you buy a book or game by clicking one of our links. We don't get any credit if you just Google it instead :)
This isn't brain rot; it's the antidote. Raymie Nightingale is a quiet, beautiful book that reminds kids they aren't alone in their big, messy feelings.
It’s DiCamillo, so you’re going to get some feelings and maybe a few tears. If your kid wants explosions or high-speed chases, look elsewhere. But if they want a story that actually gets what it’s like to be ten and confused by the adults in the room, this is the gold standard. It’s a modern classic for a reason.
Perfect for ages 8 to 12. It’s got enough emotional meat for middle schoolers to chew on, but the language is clear enough for a solid 3rd-grade reader.
It centers on three girls from broken or eccentric homes who find stability in each other. It models genuine empathy and the idea that you can choose your own 'family' when your biological one is a mess.
Kate DiCamillo has a way of making a small Florida town feel like a stage for an epic quest. The girls' internal lives and their specific, oddball goals—like learning to twirl a baton to save a soul—are highly original.
Zero issues with violence, language, or inappropriate content. The only 'danger' here is the heavy emotional weight of parental abandonment and the existential dread of being ten years old.
The vocabulary is sophisticated without being stuffy. It deals with complex themes like neglect, aging, and loss in a way that helps kids build serious emotional intelligence.
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