by M. J. Auch 260 pages Grades 6-9Not only does Travis have to worry about how to survive on the street, he is also worried about the rest of his family. His younger sister had to give up going to school to take care of their three younger siblings; the three little ones are missing their mom, and don’t really understand what has happened to her; his father is so distraught he has lost one job and cannot find another; his mother, rather than being helped to recover, has been housed in a convalescent home with a lot of people not expected to get any better.
Travis has his hands full, and his pockets empty. Guitar Boy is a different kind of survival story.
Other stories about difficult family situations are Bloomability, by Sharon Creech, and If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period, by Gennifer Choldenko.
By Blue Balliett, 306 pages mystery for Grades 5-8
by Gordon Korman p. 260 Grades: 6-9
By Fran Cannon Slayton, 162 pages Grades 6-10
by Craig Moodie, p.201 – Grades 6-9
by V.M. Jones, p. 264 – Grades 6-9