Mostly the Honest Truth

by Jody J. Little

Overview

A pitch-perfect story exploring the many meanings of family, Jody J. Little’s tough yet tender debut is perfect for fans of Leslie Connor and Katherine Paterson.

After Pop is sent back to rehab, Jane Pengilly arrives at her newest foster home determined to stick to the straight and narrow and get back to her beloved dad as soon as she can. It’s not the first time they’ve been apart, but Jane’s determined it will be the last.

Twelve days out in the boonies of Three Boulders makes Jane miss Pop more than ever. But as the days go by, she realizes that family is more than who you’re related to—and that a home can be found in the unlikeliest of places.

Mostly the Honest Truth sparkles with a fully realized supporting cast, a safe and supporting setting, and a writer whose ability to imbue her stories with love and hope marks her an author to watch.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062852502
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	04/05/2022
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	1,157,929
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jody J. Little is an elementary school teacher in Portland, Oregon, who loves sharing her joy of books with her students. She is the author of Mostly the Honest Truth and Worse Than Weird. Visit her at www.jodyjlittle.com or follow her on Twitter @jodyjlittle.

Editorial Reviews

To get to Three Boulders, turn right at the juncture of sadness and courage, keep straight to the edge of wisdom, and take the fork to understanding.  You won’t want to leave that magical place.

Susan Patron

Jane is an old-fashioned fix-it kid in this sweet story of folks young and old in need of what the Three Boulders stand for: forgiveness, redemption, and community.

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

Jane is an old-fashioned fix-it kid in this sweet story of folks young and old in need of what the Three Boulders stand for: forgiveness, redemption, and community.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Jane is an old-fashioned fix-it kid in this sweet story of folks young and old in need of what the Three Boulders stand for: forgiveness, redemption, and community.

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

05/06/2019

At the opening of Little’s first novel, 11-year-old Jane Pengilly is on her way to her fourth foster home, her burned hand hurts, and her alcoholic father is in rehab yet again—and she misses him deeply. Officer D, a police officer and her short-term foster mother, takes her to “boonieville,” also known as Three Boulders, an isolated Oregon town with strict rules (and no television) where “Redemption. Forgiveness. Community” is the motto. It’s a remote area, very different from Jane’s usual suburban placements, but what’s most upsetting is that Jane doesn’t know why she’s there, aside from waiting out her father’s latest rehab stint, and the adults hold their secrets close. She remembers her father “holding my arm and mumbling mishmash words” on the kitchen floor, then a hospital stay. While Jane makes new friends, she counts down the days until she can go home, craving a return to normalcy. The plot feels a bit thin in places, but Jane’s tough-minded attitude and convincingly portrayed stress and separation anxiety will capture readers’ attention as she gradually heals and uncovers the truth about her family. Ages 8–12. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Jane is an old-fashioned fix-it kid in this sweet story of folks young and old in need of what the Three Boulders stand for: forgiveness, redemption, and community.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“This upbeat tale portrays a hero’s journey that takes a community to complete.” — Kirkus Reviews

“To get to Three Boulders, turn right at the juncture of sadness and courage, keep straight to the edge of wisdom, and take the fork to understanding.  You won’t want to leave that magical place.” — Susan Patron, Newbery Medal-winning author of The Higher Power of Lucky

“Jane Pengilly is prickly, persistent—and an utter delight! She, and the other inhabitants of Three Boulders, will take your heart apart and put it back together again. A superb debut.” — Leslie Connor, author of The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle

From the Publisher

Jane Pengilly is prickly, persistent—and an utter delight! She, and the other inhabitants of Three Boulders, will take your heart apart and put it back together again. A superb debut.

Leslie Connor

2018-11-26

Jane Pengilly has a lot on her plate: a dad in rehab, her badly burned hand, and a police officer/foster mom whose home is a most unusual community.

Jane, 11, figures she can handle just about anything for the 12 days it will take Pop to clear alcohol rehab—and her fourth stint in foster care. While Officer D isn't bad as foster moms go, there's no TV in the rustic cabin or anywhere else at Three Boulders, a community of 56 adults and children in the Oregon woods. The food's terrific, though Jane would still rather be longboarding with Pop. She bonds with Gertie Biggs, also 11, who tells her the boulders represent redemption, forgiveness, and community. If so, why are the property's nonagenarian owner and adult residents keeping secrets? No fan of school, Jane's intrigued by this one, which features nature study and garden maintenance, but reuniting with Pop remains her priority. Ignoring her worsening injury, assertive Jane persuades Gertie, 12-year-old Loam, and his tiny, mute, artistic 15-year-old sister, Dandy, to help her get to Pop. Some plot elements feel only just sketched-out, and the swift resolution leaves vital threads dangling. This debut's strength is its sympathetic, believable child characters—especially stubborn, likable Jane, an original who grounds and recenters the story when it threatens to strain credulity. The book adheres to the white default.

Celebrating collective along with individual action, this upbeat tale portrays a hero's journey that takes a community to complete. (Fiction. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews