The Order of Things

by Kaija Langley

Overview

A heart-rending novel-in-verse about a girl beginning to learn it is possible to go on even after a great loss. Now in paperback.

Eleven-year-old April Jackson loves playing the drums, almost as much as she loves her best friend, Zee, a violin prodigy. They both dream of becoming professional musicians one day. When Zee starts attending a new school that will nurture his talent, April decides it’s time for her to pursue her dreams, too, and finally take drum lessons. She knows she isn’t very good to start, but with Zee’s support, she also knows someday she can be just as good as her hero, Sheila E., and travel all around the world with a pair of drumsticks in her hand.

When the unthinkable happens and Zee suddenly passes away, April is crushed by grief. Without Zee, nothing is the way it’s supposed to be. Zee's Dad isn't delivering the mail for his postal route like he should. April's Mom is suddenly dating someone new who is occupying too much space in their lives. And every time April tries to play the drums, all she can think about is Zee.

April isn't sure how to move on from the awful feeling of being without Zee. Desperate to help Papa Zee, she decides to secretly deliver the mail he’s been neglecting. But when on her route she discovers a classmate in trouble, she doesn’t second guess what she knows is the right thing to do.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593530924
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	01/21/2025
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.06(w) x 7.75(h) x 0.69(d)
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Kaija Langley was born in Northern NJ and raised on a healthy diet of library books, music and theater performances, and visits to the family farm in rural North Carolina. The author of the award-winning picture book, When Langston Dances, she loves long road trips, dancing wherever music moves her, and adventures near and far with her Beloved. She splits her time between Cambridge, MA and Los Angeles, CA.

Read an Excerpt

The Sound of Music
makes everything better,
even the first day of school.

In the quiet of morning, there’s no mistaking the faint sound of a violin, my best friend, Zee, playing at this early hour.

We’re both going to school today, but not the same one,
not anymore.

Wash, Brush, Dress
in my school uniform with the crisp collar,
skirt pleats poppin’,
creased shirtsleeves sharp enough to cut you,
like Mama taught me.

I double-check my ponytail,
every strand in place, grab my bookbag, my drumsticks,
and ease into the kitchen.

Devour the orange-cranberry scone
Mama baked special for today.

I slip into her room for a kiss,
but don’t wake her.

Her UPS badge on the dresser, her head half beneath the pillow.

Working night shift loading trucks means
Mama sleeps most of

the day, works most of the night, and we live in the quiet moments in between.

Like Clockwork
Zee waits for me in the hallway outside his apartment, across from my own.

He’s dressed in a burgundy polo,
a gold-and-blue crest on his chest,
khaki pants, new black loafers.

The hallway reeks of fried eggs and onions, strong coffee and cologne. Zee has one leg kicked behind him on the wall,
his violin case in his hand, his face as hard as stone.

Zee closes his eyes,
takes three long, deep breaths but still no words.

He’s usually not this quiet.

You okay, Zee?

We gabbed all summer about today, so I know he’s as excited,
and as nervous too, as I am.

His eyes open when Papa Zee exits their apartment,
door slamming behind him,
shirt untucked, hat on backward.

He’s late to work today but still plants a kiss on our foreheads before ushering us to the elevator.

He jabs the button so many times I’m afraid it might break. We’re only on the twelfth floor, but the elevator always seems slowest when we’re in a rush.

One for the road? Papa Zee asks, winking.
How do you make a bandstand?

How? I ask.

Zee leans forward,
fully alert.

You take away their chairs!

Zee laughs out loud.
A real laugh, a belly laugh.
The mood lighter now, the elevator arrives.

It’s Been
Zee and me forever,
same walk to the same school,
same classes, same teachers,
until Papa Zee promised when the new Boston STEAM charter school with a focus on the arts opened in the neighborhood,
Zee could audition.

It’s been six months since and
I still don’t feel prepared.

You scared? I ask, falling in step with Zee.

At least we still get to walk together most of the way, our schools only five blocks apart.

Not scared. Can’t believe it’s literally happening.
I’m already good, you know?

Good is an understatement.
Zee is a violin prodigy.

I’m nowhere close,
but I want to be better.

Me too, Zee. Me too.

Zander Elliot Ellis Jr.
is Zee for short—never loud, or rough and tumble, hard or fast, or the clown of the class—just Zee.

Because he’s a junior,
saying Zander means
Daddy and son both turn with those same big eyes, broad nose,
velvet-brown skin,
with a smirk on their lips, a question in their eyes.

We were born a month apart,
but Zee was twice my size even as babies, but no match for my energy in the playpen where we cried . . .
wrestled . . .
cuddled . . .
each other before we crawled . . .
walked . . .
talked.

Zee is more than my best friend, he’s like a brother. He’s family.

We’re bookends.
We are.
I’m the A to his Z.

The Order of Things
in my life is simple:

quiet and efficient,
calm never commotion,
just as Mama likes it.

Like putting on socks before shoes, letting dough rise before baking, kissing Mama good night first thing in the morning.

It’s important.

We keep our voices low, the television off, even our alarm clocks don’t beep because we never set them.

There’s nothing except books and magazines to distract us when most people have a television going 24/7,
reality shows or news,
but Mama has no patience for either.

I asked Mama once why we live the way we do.

Warehouse work is noisier than you can imagine.
And don’t get me started about what it was like in the army.
Silence is golden. It is music to my ears.

A quiet home is a small sacrifice to keep Mama happy, but wanting to play the drums makes me a round peg in a square hole,
always out of place.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for The Order of Things:

A Black Caucus American Library Association Best of the Best 2023 Pick
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
A Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Blue Ribbons Best Books of 2023

“A lyrical and emotionally powerful novel-in-verse…it’s an uplifting tale of grief, courage, and community.” —The Boston Globe

★ “This well-crafted novel in verse is rich in detail . . . The characters are fully realized, and the themes of family, change, and grief are handled with sensitivity and care. A heart-rending narrative of friendship, family, and the path to healing.” —Kirkus, starred review

★ “Langley explores communal grieving and found family in this middle grade debut, a layered novel in verse. . . Declarative lines paint a spare picture of interpersonal bonds and grief, while . . . resilience and desire to uplift loved ones guide a narrative that’s invested in themes of loss, ethics, and empathy.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ “This novel-in-verse is a steady roll that powerfully builds, like a satisfying drum solo, and Langley creates a beautiful (if tragic) symphony. . . allowing for tender, heartrending expressions of intergenerational and found family caring in times of deep loss. . . Fans of Kwame Alexander’s emotionally charged and character-driven verse novels will have no problem dancing to the beat of this drum.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review

“Langley has crafted a lovely, beautifully written, and well-plotted novel in verse, populated with memorable, empathetic characters who come alive on the page. Give her a standing O.” —Booklist

"Langley deftly twines music, poetry, family, and friendship in her middle grade debut in verse…Langley’s verse is both approachable and engaging. Despite a relatively low word count, characters, setting, and plot are richly developed. Readers coming for the music will stay for the feels…A strong purchase for most collections and an easy recommendation for a variety of readers." —School Library Journal

"In this compelling verse novel,…Langley takes readers on an emotionally turbulent ride while highlighting characters’ strengths and flaws. The protagonists’ love of music breathes life into the plot and propels the action forward. An honest and poignant portrayal of loss and grief that affirms that time and a supportive community contribute to healing." —The Horn Book

From the Publisher

★ 05/01/2023

Langley (When Langston Dances) explores communal grieving and found family in this middle grade debut, a layered novel in verse. With her “best and only true friend” Zee Ellis admitted to study violin at a Boston STEAM charter school, 11-year-old April Jackson enters sixth grade determined to fulfill her own musical dreams by taking drum lessons with Zee’s dad. Music and her deepening bond with Papa Zee ground April as she clashes with a nosy, talkative classmate, takes in her queer single mom’s new romance, and worries about increasingly distant Zee, who experiences a possibly stress-induced health scare. After April reluctantly promises to keep Zee’s cardiac symptoms secret, his sudden death leaves her feeling regretful and “dreaming solo,” and when Papa Zee’s grief reaches new heights, April must reach out to her community to compose her new normal. Declarative lines paint a spare picture of interpersonal bonds and grief, while April’s resilience and desire to uplift loved ones guides a narrative that’s invested in themes of loss, ethics, and empathy. Most characters cue as Black. An author’s note provides background on sudden cardiac arrest. Ages 10–14. Agent: Charlotte Sheedy, Charlotte Sheedy Literary. (June)

Publishers Weekly

06/16/2023

Gr 4–6—Langley (When Langston Dances) deftly twines music, poetry, family, and friendship in her middle grade debut in verse. Eleven year-old April is a budding percussionist under the tutelage of neighbor and found family Papa Zee. When April's best friend Zee, Papa Zee's son and a violin prodigy, passes away unexpectedly, her life is thrown into chaos. Her mother is dating a woman from work and things are getting serious. Papa Zee struggles to maintain his job through his grief. At school, April's fledgling friend Asa is mysteriously unwell and frequently absent. As April navigates the tumult, she wrestles with a secret which might have saved Zee's life. Ultimately, an opportunity to use her voice to save another friend helps April find resolution. Langley's verse is both approachable and engaging. Despite a relatively low word count, characters, setting, and plot are richly developed. Readers coming for the music will stay for the feels; readers looking for a good cry may find themselves seeking out more about April's pantheon of "drum mavens." Characters are presumed cisgender; Mama is queer. April and most other characters are Black; Asa and her family are white. Papa Zee and April's mama are both single parents when the book begins. VERDICT A strong purchase for most collections and an easy recommendation for a variety of readers.—Taylor Worley

School Library Journal

Karen Murray embodies this free-verse story's characters, emotive qualities, and rhythm. With authenticity, she portrays 11-year-old April, who is uncertain about going to a different school from her best friend, Zee, a musical prodigy. Murray builds April's discomfort with nosy classmate Asa and her mother's new girlfriend. She misses Zee and lets him persuade her not to worry his father about his racing heart. Murray's depiction of April's shock and horror at Zee's sudden death is stunning as is her depiction of April's grief, which she says "feels like a hole inside me." Listeners will feel the pain of April's guilt-driven compensating behavior when she learns about Asa's hidden life and the fact Zee's father is no longer doing his job as a mail carrier. S.W. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2023 - AudioFile

Karen Murray embodies this free-verse story's characters, emotive qualities, and rhythm. With authenticity, she portrays 11-year-old April, who is uncertain about going to a different school from her best friend, Zee, a musical prodigy. Murray builds April's discomfort with nosy classmate Asa and her mother's new girlfriend. She misses Zee and lets him persuade her not to worry his father about his racing heart. Murray's depiction of April's shock and horror at Zee's sudden death is stunning as is her depiction of April's grief, which she says "feels like a hole inside me." Listeners will feel the pain of April's guilt-driven compensating behavior when she learns about Asa's hidden life and the fact Zee's father is no longer doing his job as a mail carrier. S.W. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2023 - AudioFile

★ 2023-03-29
An 11-year-old girl suffers a devastating loss when her best friend suddenly dies.

April and best friend Zee, both African American, live across the hall from each other in their Boston apartment building. Their tight unit is disrupted when gifted violinist Zee, who comes from a musical family, is admitted to a new STEAM charter school. April is happy for him but knows her school experience will change. Sure enough, she is paired with socially awkward Asa, who’s shunned by the two other White girls in class. April asks Zee’s dad, Papa Zee, to give her drumming lessons, fulfilling her own dreams. But there are difficult things too: Zee has some alarming health symptoms and swears April to secrecy, April’s single mom is seeing a new woman, and Asa is behaving unusually. When Zee’s next medical episode proves fatal, April’s grief is compounded by her guilt over keeping quiet. Before long she’s hiding something else, as she observes the extent of Papa Zee’s depression. When she learns the truth about what Asa’s family is going through, however, April realizes she has to share all she has been keeping inside. This well-crafted novel in verse is rich in detail and successfully conveys the depth of April’s emotions. The characters are fully realized, and the themes of family, change, and grief are handled with sensitivity and care.

A heart-rending narrative of friendship, family, and the path to healing. (author’s note) (Verse fiction. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews