This story gently rejoices in two charismatic young people whose dedication and compassion illustrate what it means to be heroes in the real world.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
Kids' lives are loud. Shouts and songs from YouTube and TikTok compete with the rattle and thumps of swing sets and basketball courts, and that's just on the outside. Anxiety about missing out and keeping up clamors within at all hours. In Here in the Real World , Sara Pennypacker's captivating new novel, 11-year-old Ware pushes back against the hubbub by taking a stand for silence, discovering his true calling along the way…This is a quiet novel, but don't mistake its serenity for somnolence. Pennypacker…fills the pages with observations that will prompt young Snapchatters to slow down and admire small gems…Devoid of cellphones and any mention of social media, this heartfelt imaginative adventure shines a light on the rich inner resources children still have access to, and thunderingly trumpets the need for silence, space and solitude so that creativity can bloom.
The New York Times Book Review - Jennifer Hubert Swan
★ 11/25/2019
When Ware’s grandmother falls and breaks her hip, the idle summer that the relentlessly scheduled 11-and-a-half-year-old was looking forward to is canceled. His parents make last-minute arrangements for him to attend a community center camp, instead, a prospect that prompts “the familiar contracting retreat of the thing that lived deep in his chest, which must be his soul.” Impulsively, Ware escapes to the rubbled remains of a nearby church—the perfect place for the Middle Ages–obsessed boy to build his own medieval refuge while pretending to attend camp. The space is already occupied, however: prickly Jolene has claimed it as a garden to grow papayas that she’ll sell to make up for her aunt “drinking the rent.” The two establish an uneasy truce, agreeing to share the space at a distance, until they must join forces to prevent the intrusion of the real world by way of a looming crisis. Pennypacker’s humane tale is written with straightforward grace and populated with exquisitely layered characters; vulnerable, imaginative Ware’s journey to self-acceptance is particularly skillfully rendered. Ages 8–12. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Feb.)
Pennypacker’s humane tale is written with straightforward grace and populated with exquisitely layered characters; vulnerable, imaginative Ware’s journey to self-acceptance is particularly skillfully rendered.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“This story gently rejoices in two charismatic young people whose dedication and compassion illustrate what it means to be heroes in the real world.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
"Pennypacker tells a human story of growth and transformation. Smooth prose and short chapters make for a compulsively readable tale, fit for middle-graders in the process of discovering themselves." — Booklist
“This sweet, sensitive book shines a light on the introverts and misfits.” — School Library Journal
"Pennypacker tells a human story of growth and transformation. Smooth prose and short chapters make for a compulsively readable tale, fit for middle-graders in the process of discovering themselves."
01/01/2020
Gr 4–6— Eleven-year old Ware prefers daydreaming about knights and the Middle Ages to socializing, a personality quirk that worries his overworked parents. Because he is happy to spend most days "off in his own world," his parents agree to let him spend the summer with his grandma. But when she breaks her hips in an accident at home, his promise of a peaceful summer is disrupted as his parents sign him up for the dreaded recreation camp. Overwhelming, loud, and full of the forced interactions and "funneration" that he hates, Ware avoids the camp by hiding out in the abandoned lot next door to the building. There he meets Jolene, a smart, secretive girl who spends her days planting a garden in the rubble of the church that once stood in the lot. Together, the two form a tentative connection; Jolene planting her garden, and Ware creating a castle from the ruins of the church. When their shared sanctuary is threatened by outside forces, the titular "real world," Ware and Jolene's relationship deepens into a delicate friendship as they band together to save the lot. This sweet, sensitive book shines a light on the introverts and misfits. Despite wishing he could live up to his parents' desire for a "normal" kid, Ware's unique personality is validated by a kindred spirit, his uncle, who suggests that he is an artist with his own vision of the world. Ware's quiet sensibility blends well with Jolene, who's tough exterior comes from hardship and an abusive relative. VERDICT Perfect for fans of Pennypacker's earlier novels Summer of the Gypsy Moths and Pax . Recommended for purchase in most libraries.—Kristy Pasquariello, Westwood Public Library, MA
Narrator Noah Galvin’s dreamy tones depict the introversion of 11-year-old Ware, who enters medieval worlds more readily than he takes part in the “normal” life that surrounds him. Faced with a summer of attending a chaotic rec program, Ware discovers peace and quiet in a deserted church next door. It doesn’t remain peaceful for long. He soon meets the cynical Jolene, a girl who has been hurt by the background she hides. Galvin captures the dynamic between the pair as artistic Ware’s visions conflict with Jolene’s accusations that his thinking is not of the real world but of “Magic Fairness Land.” Gradually, tenderness grows between the two as they create a garden and a refuge for migrating birds, despite the threat of developers. The mix of graceful plot and deep feelings creates a good family listen. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine
FEBRUARY 2020 - AudioFile
2019-11-24
Eleven-and-a-half-year-old Ware can't wait to spend the Florida summer with his grandmother, enjoying "long hours free and alone." Other adults—including his overprotective, hyperefficient mother and sports-loving father—discourage his being "off in his own world." But when his grandmother takes a fall, he must trade privacy for "Meaningful Social Interaction" in the Summer Rec program. He finds sanctuary in nearby church ruins, where he meets cynical, secretive Jolene and bird activist Ashley. When the property is slated for auction, medieval-history buff Ware invokes the "Knights' Code"—a feminist but nonetheless romanticized version of the code of chivalry—resolving to "be always the champion of the Right and the Good" and defend their refuge. Victory, however, takes unexpected forms. Though Pennypacker's exploration of what "fairness" means is thought-provoking, one-dimensional characterization weakens such powerful themes as abuse, self-advocacy, and self-acceptance. Tough-but-wounded Jolene is little more than a foil for the nearly angelic Ware, whose acute empathy even perceives a cut plant's "cry of betrayal." (The intense pain his empathy causes him goes unexamined.) Though introverted or sensitive kids may recognize Ware's poignant struggles to connect with his parents, his heavy-handed portrayal—which his uncle folds neatly into the sensitive-artist trope—blunts some emotional impact. Most characters, including the kids, appear white; a supportive grocer is Greek.
A well-meaning but belabored recognition of introverts, artists, and activists. (Fiction. 8-12)
