14 Hollow Road by Jenn Bishop

14 Hollow Road (ARC Review)

• Author: Jenn Bishop
• Published: June 13^th, 2017
• Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
• Ratings: 4/5

ARC Synopsis

The night of the sixth-grade dance is suppossed to be perfect for Maddie:  she’ll wear her beautiful new dress, she’ll hit the dance floor with her friends, and her crush,  Avery, will ask her to dance.  Most importantly, she’ll finally leave her tiny elementary school behind for junior high.  But as the  first slow song starts to play, her plans crumble.  Avery asks someone else to dance instead-and then the power goes out.  Huddle int he gym, Maddie and her friends are stunned to hear that a tornado has ripped through the other side of town, destroying both Maddie’s and Avery’s homes.

Kind neighbors open up their home to Maddie’s and Avery’s families, which both excites and horrifies Maddie, Sharing the same house with Avery?  For the entire summer?  While it buys her some time to prove that Avery made the wrong choice at the dance, it also means he’ll be there to witness morning breath and her annoying little brother.  Meanwhile, she must search for her beloved dog, who went missing during the tornado.  At the dance, all she wanted was to be more grown-up.  Now that she has no choice, is she really ready for it?

My thoughts

This story follows Maddie, and she is excited because finally she will get to dance with Avery (her crush) at the school dance.  Maddie gets disappointed when Avery asked someone else closed to Maddie to dance with him and she can’t understand what has happened.  After the first dance they announced that a tornado hit the other side of town and everyone’s trying to contact their parents to see what’s going on.  Maddie and Avery found out they will be living together for the summer since both their family’s home have been destroyed.  Maddie is completely nervous about having Avery so closed to her knowing her every move but she is also excited to be able to have Avery closer to her.  Maddie also finds that her dog has gone missing during the tornado and she goes in search of Hank, her dog.

This story has so many great topics like family tragedy, friendship, crushes and loss.  I love the fact that Maddie and  her family were very connected and understanding of the problems they were all facing. This story is a great portrayal of true friendship and what life is like for some twelve year olds.

14 Hollow Road is a well written middle grade story that I truly enjoyed and will definitely recommend to readers of all ages.

Thank you to the author and Random House & Alfred A. Knopf for providing me with an ARC copy of this book, in exchange for a review. ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN.