THE TOP-SECRET JOURNAL OF FIONA CLAIRE JARDIN

Through the journal entries of a 10-year-old, Cruise explores the healing power of writing and expression. Fiona Claire Jardin shares her anger and sorrow, which she is unable to express off the page, in her chronicle of the year after her parents’ divorce. The entries are short, light, and breezy, while the book becomes a tool that will encourage readers to write in journals of their own: Fiona’s entries about a favorite photo, a room in her house, her best friend, or even her toes, make it clear that almost anything can be an object of scrutiny. While Fiona’s parents may seem romanticized—too attentive and supportive—some good characters emerge, notably Fiona’s therapist, John Robert, and her energetic teacher, Jasmine DuprÇ. Cruise doesn’t offer any new insights on the well-trodden subject, but she does present a young girl’s coping with divorce in a way that will be meaningful to middle graders. (Fiction. 8-12)