Blooming at the Texas Sunrise Motel

by Kimberly Willis Holt

Overview

Twelve-year-old Stevie attempts to brighten the lives of her cranky grandfather and the residents of his motel by planting a garden in this middle grade novel by National Book Award-winning author Kimberly Willis Holt.

Stevie's world changes drastically when her parents are tragically killed and she is forced to live with her estranged grandfather at his run-down motel. After failed attempts to connect with her grandfather, Stevie befriends the colorful motel tenants and neighbors. Together, they decide to bring some color and life to the motel by planting a flower garden, against Stevie's grandfather's wishes. It will take Stevie's departure before her grandfather realizes just how needed she is by everyone.

Blooming at the Texas Sunrise Motel explores themes of loss, family, and love, and gets at the heart of what it means to find a place to call home.

A Christy Ottaviano Book

"Endearing and imperfect, Stevie establishes immediate rapport with readers." --Kirkus Reviews

More from Kimberly Willis Holt:
Skinny Brown Dog
Dear Hank Williams
Dinner with the Highbrows
The Water Seeker
Keeper of the Night
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town

The Piper Reed series:
Piper Reed, Navy Brat
Piper Reed, Clubhouse Queen
Piper Reed Gets a Job
Piper Reed, Party Planner
Piper Reed, Campfire Girl
Piper Reed, Rodeo Star
Piper Reed, Forever Friend

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250144041
Publisher:	Square Fish
Publication date:	07/03/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	1,042,313
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 7.10(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	8 - 14 Years

About the Author

Kimberly Willis Holt is the author of many award-winning novels for young adults and children, including Dear Hank Williams and When Zachary Beaver Came to Town, winner of a National Book Award for Young People's Literature. Born in Pensacola, Florida, Holt has lived all over the U.S. and the world. She now lives in Texas with her family.

Editorial Reviews

"Endearing and imperfect, Stevie establishes immediate rapport with readers." --Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Dear Hank Williams:

"The strength of this novel lies in the insight Tate develops as she deals with tragedy and depends on the love of family. VERDICT Artfully told, this middle grade novel pleases on many levels." --Maria LaRocco, Cuyahoga Public Library, Strongsville, OH, School Library Journal, starred review

"With tidbits of history woven throughout and the rich cast of characters, especially an endearing protagonist, Dear Hank Williams is a novel that sings from the heart." --VOYA, starred review

"Soulful and satisfying." --Kirkus Reviews

"A heartbreaking revelation at the book's end secures Tate's place as a lovable protagonist, while opening the door to a hopeful future." --Booklist

"While readers will find plenty to love and to revisit if encountering this novel on their own, the snappy pace, engaging tone, and epistolary format make this an engaging classroom readaloud, with the skillful exposition and the incorporation of historical details providing discussion fodder and potential curricular connection." --The Bulletin

Praise for When Zachary Beaver Came to Town:

Winner of the 1999 National Book Award for Young People's Literature

"This book packs more emotional power than 90% of the so-called grown-up novels taking up precious space on bookshelves around the country."--USA Today

"Holt may not take her readers on wild flights of fantasy, but her quiet novel offers a slice of life that's hard to resist."--The New York Times Book Review

"In her own down-to-earth, people, smart way, Holt offers a gift. . . . It is a lovely--at times even giddy--date with real life."--The Horn Book, starred review

Praise for My Louisiana Sky:

"An unusually auspicious debut."--Publishers Weekly, starred review

"This lyrical first novel brings fresh perspective to the guilt and anger and caring that surround the mentally disabled. All the characters . . . are drawn with warmth but no patronizing reverence."--Booklist, starred review

From the Publisher

01/01/2017
Gr 4–6—With well-established skill and insight, Holt introduces middle grade readers to another appealing adolescent, 13-year-old Stevie Grace. Stevie's uncomplicated, insulated life with her loving, earthy, retro parents is ripped apart when a drunk driver careens into her mother and father's flower and fruit stand, killing them both. Suddenly, Stevie is on a bus headed toward her maternal grandfather, Winston, and about to discover a family history she never knew existed. A motley cast of characters await her at her grandfather's establishment, the dilapidated Texas Sunrise Motel. As Stevie struggles to understand her grandfather's emotional indifference and high expectations, she uncovers her mother's past through local townspeople: aging, narcoleptic Mrs. Crump, once her mother's teacher; Arlo and son Roy, who maintain the motel; Violet, a fashionista who loves movie marathons; and Horace and Ida, permanent motel residents who each have disabilities. When a letter arrives from the family of Stevie's father, Stevie visits Louisiana and a houseful of chatty, affectionate relatives who share memories of her father and invite her to stay. But Stevie is drawn back to the motel, where a new garden and her welcoming grandfather await her. Stevie's journey is deftly narrated with candor, angst, and compassion. Character portraits are diverse and well drawn. Stevie's small town life, from Taos, NM, to Little Esther, TX, is rich in family secrets, quiet discoveries, and evolving relationships. Universal themes of grief, family, love, and loyalty are conveyed through the understated prose. VERDICT Stevie's realizations and emotional growth are orderly, often predictable, but her fresh voice, keen observations, and youthful resilience resonate. A solid addition for most middle grade collections.—Gerry Larson, formerly at Durham School of the Arts, NC

School Library Journal

2016-11-16
Thirteen-year-old Stevie thought her mother's father was dead—until her parents' unexpected deaths result in her traveling from New Mexico to her grandfather's motel in Texas.Olive-skinned, blue-eyed Stevie recounts in present tense the months following her parents' deaths. On board the bus to meet her grandfather, a clear picture emerges of her previous life with her parents, farmers with a small farm and a roadside stand. By the time she has reached the bus station, readers have learned some of her background and her dreams—and that the only taboo topic in her happy home was her parents' families. As she meets her grandfather, his employees, and the disabled couple who permanently occupies one of the run-down motel's rooms, Stevie rises to the occasion of forging a new life for herself, partly by using her gardening skills. She processes her grief and her new relationships with a winning combination of grace, mistakes, humor, contemplation, and determination. By the end of less than a year, many positive changes have occurred. The one disappointment for readers is best summed up by Stevie after her grandfather has finally answered many of her questions about her parents: "I thought his telling me more about what happened would answer everything. But it's like he's given me a jigsaw puzzle with pieces missing." Endearing and imperfect, Stevie establishes immediate rapport with readers. (Fiction. 10-13)

Kirkus Reviews