Most readers know Julie Murphy as the author of PUDDIN' and DUMPLIN' (a Netflix film). DEAR SWEET PEA is her first middle grade novel. It would be a good fit for any reader fifth grade and up.
Sweet Pea is adjusting to a lot. Her parents recently divorced, and she is now living between two houses on the same street. Her therapist mother decided the best thing for Sweet Pea was to have both her parents living in almost identical houses separated only by Miss Flora Mae, the neighborhood eccentric.
Another change Sweet Pea is still trying to come to terms with is the loss of her former friend, Kiera. Always best friends, Kiera and Sweet Pea went their separate ways when Kiera chose to hang out with a group of older girls, leaving Sweet Pea behind. Kiera didn't just move on to different friends; she also became a mean girl. Sweet Pea struggles to ignore Kiera's snide remarks about her weight and her parents' divorce. Little does she know, Kiera is dealing with struggles of her own. Oscar, Sweet Pea's true best friend, is also acting a bit weird lately.
Fortunately, Miss Flora Mae offers Sweet Pea a distraction when she asks Sweet Pea to gather her mail and water her plants while she is off helping her ailing sister. Sweet Pea has always been fascinated by Miss Flora Mae I, an advice column in the local newspaper. Having written many letters to Miss Flora Mae, Sweet Pea relishes the opportunity to sneak peeks at the letters she's been asked to forward on to the old columnist. She even tries her hand at answering a few and slipping them into the return delivery to the newspaper's editor. Seeing her advice letters printed is certainly a thrill.
DEAR SWEET PEA takes a look at friendship, family struggles, and secrets. Sweet Pea learns that dealing with relationships means being open, caring, and trustworthy. There's a little something for everyone in Julie Murphy's debut middle grade book.
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