What is a great friendship book for elementary and middle school kids?
Clues to the Universe by Christina Li is!
What is true friendship?
Is it only doing what you want to do and not considering the other person’s feelings? Is it being there for your best friend when they are hurting, even if you are hurting yourself?
Ro and Benji are two of the unlikeliest friends in the universe. Ro is a science nerd and Benji is an artist/comic book nerd. Benji and Ro sit next to each other in science class on the first day of school. They accidentally swap folders and this is how they formed an alliance. Ro’s folder was filled with math and diagrams on building her rocket. Benji’s folder was full of his drawings and his favorite comic book, Spacebound.
The alliance!
The alliance begins when Benji helps Ro build her rocket for the science fair, plus if Benji does good in Science then maybe his mom won’t make him drop Art. In exchange, Ro is going to help Benji find the dad that ran out on him, his mom, and his brother nine years ago.
The friendship!
The friendship begins when they learn each other secrets. Ro is building the rocket that she and her father began building before he was tragically killed in a car wreck. She feels that if she can launch this rocket into outer space then she can somehow magically reach him. Benji realizes that his long lost dad is the creator of his favorite comic books and he thinks that he is leaving a secret message to Benji on how to find him
Their friendship takes a punch when two major things happen: 1) the school bully ruins their science fair project and Benji doesn’t do anything about it and 2) Ro pushes Benji too hard to find his dad and Benji snaps at her.
Can their friendship recover from this fight?
Can they forgive each other for the mean things they have said to each other? And then Benji goes missing. Will Ro be able to find him before something bad happens?
Do not miss this incredible story of friendship, loyalty, and family issues that seem too big to overcome.
Why I love this book!
This book will grab you from the first page! The heartbreak of a father who has been tragically taken from you plus losing your best friend and feeling all alone hits you right out of the gate. I believe the loneliness of these two characters is what attracts them to each other. To watch these two grow close enough to each other to share their secret hopes and fears is touching. You will fall in love with these two characters and root them on every step of the way!
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