EVERY MISSING PIECE

While trying to solve the mystery of a missing boy, Maddy finds a new family.

Ever since her father died, Maddy Gaines has been anxious, performing weekly safety checks on her small-town North Carolina home and garnering the sheriff’s ire for calling in too many false alarms. When the 11-year-old not only becomes obsessed with the news reports about the abducted Billy Holcomb, but thinks she has spotted him in her own neighborhood, she knows she must uncover proof before reporting it this time. Maddy’s heartfelt first-person narration reveals how her recon missions to find out more about a new classmate named Eric leave her with increasing certainty that he’s actually Billy, as well as funny feelings for a boy for the first time. Adding to the light mystery are more areas of concern for the preteen: Her mother has recently remarried, and she and quirky Stan now want a new baby; her best friend, Cress, seems to be growing up faster than Maddy is ready to; and she’s afraid of losing the memories of her father. Conklin’s fine Southern storytelling, complete with Cheerwine, homemade pies, and pig pickin’s, blends these nuanced realities with care. A nail-biting ending brings hopeful resolutions, including a growing family that still honors Maddy’s dad. Maddy, her family, Billy, and Eric are white while Cress is black.

Maddy’s spunky resilience will appeal to girls adjusting to their own changes.