heartbeatSummary: "Twelve year old Annie ponders the many rhythms of life the year that her mother becomes pregnant, her grandfather begins faltering, and her best friend (and running partner) becomes distant."
Strengths: I love the rhythm used in this book that definitely portrays the feeling of running and of a heart beating. The way this book is written makes it very unique and very catchy. The imagery used in Annie's class assignment of depicting an apple over time is very symbolic and adds a lot to the book. Students who have aging grandparents and students who will soon have a baby sibling can definitely relate to the main character. The relationship between Max and Annie as they run and help each other adds another interesting story line. I really like that this book encourages one to stay true to oneself, just as Annie stayed true to herself by not running on a team. (I also enjoyed that I could relate to the character through my name and passion for running!)
Concerns: Elementary school aged students may have difficulties relating to this book. The main character is 12 years old, so middle school aged students would probably really enjoy this book. Students need to be prepared to read this book in a different way because it is written as poetry. Without preparation, students may be very confused.
Classroom Use/Other Comments: Ages 9 and up. Teachers can use this book in the classroom to introduce footnotes through the parts of the book about learning footnotes. Students could read this book for fun or as a way to learn about use of poetry in books.
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