when you reach me by rebecca stead summary

But - and it's difficult to explain without spoilers - after you've finished the book, the whole thing seem to unravel and remake itself into something completely new, but something that makes absolute sense. When You Reach Me is a combination of kitchen sink drama, mystery puzzle and science fiction: how is the conflict with Sal resolved? Who is the laughing man? How could time travel work? These three strands are so cleverly worked through, with the realistic coming-of-age story uppermost your mind as you read. Mysterious notes left for Miranda that accurately predict the future. There's the laughing man, an itinerant who hangs around outside Miranda's apartment building, practising kung-fu kicks and chanting bookbag pocketshoe over and over and over.Īnd if that isn't enough, there are the notes. So why would he punch someone for no reason? There's Miranda's mother, who won't give her boyfriend a key to their apartment, even though Miranda wouldn't mind, and who is about to appear on a popular TV game show to try and win $20,000. He's a science and maths geek who thinks about time travel and notices that Miranda's favourite book is A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L'Engle. There's Marcus, the boy who punched Sal, but who isn't the violent type at all.

But there are other things afoot in Miranda's life. We all remember the difficulties of childhood friendships - who's who in the pecking order, who's left out in the cold.

And then Colin joins the group, which adds yet more complications - Miranda likes Colin, but she's worried he might like Annemarie. So she strikes up a friendship with Annemarie, but that involves coming between Annemarie and the stuck-up Julia. This loss leaves Miranda somewhat adrift, as she and Sal have been inseparable since they were at day care together. Since her best friend Sal was punched on the street for no reason, he's been distant, shutting Miranda out of his life. Miranda has quite a bit going on in her life. Easy to read, it's about time travel, friendship, and redemption - age old themes, but we never tire of their retelling.

Summary: Delightful riff on A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L'Engle that deservedly won the Newbery Medal.

When you reach me by rebecca stead summary