If you write your wish beneath the stamp on a letter, the letter will carry the wish with it.

ISBN-13: 9780545035316 ISBN: 0545035317 Never whistle on a boat. If you are a Foster or adoptive family, this will be particularly poignant.

His mother's unannounced appearance (at Tess's bold, clandestine invitation) at a talent show in which Aaron plays the trumpet adds tension and pathos to the finale of this stirring novel. Touch Blue By Cynthia Lord Publisher: Scholastic, Inc. Awaiting the arrival of Aaron, her teenage foster brother, Tess an avid collector of good-luck talismans is thrilled to find a piece of blue sea glass, since blue is especially lucky: 'Touch blue and your wish will come true.' Lord interlaces themes of loss, luck, superstition, family, and belonging, but at the heart of this tightly woven story is Tess's longing to help Aaron overcome his hurt and anger at having been taken from his alcoholic mother (years before) and shuffled among foster homes, and to make him feel like he's part of her close-knit family. Newbery Honor author Cynthia Lord offers a warm-hearted, humorous, and thoughtful look at what it means to belong-and how lucky we feel when we do. When Tess's best friend's family moves away and there are no longer enough students to keep her island school open, her family is among those that offer to take in foster children to boost enrollment. As she did in the Newbery Honor winning Rules, Lord introduces a plucky, articulate girl from coastal Maine. Newbery Honor author Cynthia Lord offers a warm-hearted, humorous, and thoughtful look at what it means to belong-and how lucky we feel when we do.

Touch Blue by Cynthia Lord