Jennifer L. Holm
Author of Our Only May Amelia
About the Author
After graduating from Dickinson College, Jennifer L. Holm became a broadcast producer of television commercials and music videos for numerous companies including Nickelodeon, MTV, American Express, Hershey's and Huggies. Her first book, Our Only May Amelia, was a 2000 Newbery Honor Book. Both Penny show more from Heaven and Turtle in Paradise were Newbery Honor recipients in 2007 and 2011, respectively. She is also the author of numerous series including Boston Jane, Babymouse, and The Stink Files, which she writes with her husband Jonathan Hamel. Her title, The Fourteenth Goldfish made The New York Times Best Seller List in 2014. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Library of Congress
Series
Works by Jennifer L. Holm
Associated Works
Friends: Stories About New Friends, Old Friends, and Unexpectedly True Friends (2005) — Contributor — 82 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1968
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Places of residence
- California, USA (Birth)
Audubon, Pennsylvania, USA
New York, New York, USA - Education
- Dickinson College
Members
Reviews
Trigger warnings: Loss of limb (arm,) drug use, abuse and addiction mentioned in the past
Score: Seven out of ten.
It looks like I finally read this one. I haven't read from Jennifer L. Holm in almost two years, but I needed to complete the Sunny series (which I read out of order, since I read the first and then the fourth instalments) so I picked Swing it, Sunny, up. I headed in with high expectations and found it enjoyable.
Did I mention this one is one of the few illustrated novels I haven't read yet until now? It starts (more like continues) with Sunny Lewin moving away from Florida after the events of the first novel and now enters her first year of middle school. I initially thought it would only be another story in the list of school narratives, but it goes deeper than that. The only intriguing subplot is one involving her brother, Dale, who had to attend boarding school because of his drug abuse issues. I appreciated the pictures, which looked engaging and the likable characters, though I couldn't relate to the dysfunctional family, with Dale distancing himself from his siblings and parents, but I'm sure others can relate.
The pacing is enough to keep the book going, with its length barely over 200 pages, so I didn't find it too slow, overwhelming or filled with filler pages that add nothing. Even when Dale briefly visits Sunny during Thanksgiving, an American holiday, she thinks he changes, but he eventually warms up to her, showing intriguing character dynamics and development. I don't see settings like the one in Swing it, Sunny, that often, as Holm set this one in the late 1970s, allowing for a fascinating look into what happened at that time. Some readers may feel young in a way, but I didn't mind that much. Not all side characters are the same, with some being memorable, and others, not quite as such. Developing more characters beside Dale would improve the reading experience, though. At least the conclusion is heartwarming. I'll write my thoughts on Sunny Rolls the Dice after reviewing this one.
QI really wish books could come with trigger warnings. I can read books and deal with the death of humans but I just cannot read books in which an animal dies.
As difficult as this book was for me at the end, I still found the majority of it to be fun. The science aspect of this story and the awkward young teenagers is quite enjoyable!
As difficult as this book was for me at the end, I still found the majority of it to be fun. The science aspect of this story and the awkward young teenagers is quite enjoyable!
Lists
Sonlight Books (1)
Pioneers (1)
4th Grade Books (1)
Mooie titels (1)
Books for Nina (1)
Newbery Adjacent (2)
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 74
- Also by
- 6
- Members
- 19,179
- Popularity
- #1,137
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 792
- ISBNs
- 672
- Languages
- 9
- Favorited
- 2
Trigger warnings: N/A
Score: Seven out of ten.
At least I didn't take a few years to get around to reading Sunny Rolls the Dice by Jennifer L. Holm. After reading Swing it, Sunny, I hoped this one would be as good if not better, but let me get this straight: I wasn't disappointed. I only found the other three instalments slightly more enjoyable, but at least it wasn't an underwhelming reading experience.
It starts (more like continues) with Sunny opening a 1970s magazine and completing a quiz on how 'groovy' she is (according to late 1970s standards,) only to discover she is 'not groovy.' The theme of this collection of illustrations seems to be self-worth and how judging yourself could lead to negative consequences, and that is a discussion topic that is still relevant. The central problem is Sunny continues to judge herself harshly and changes her attributes to make herself more 'groovy' for most of the narrative, and she only stopped that in the concluding pages.
Let's move on to some other aspects, the pictures were engaging and so were some of the characters, with the spotlight being on Sunny this time as she keeps developing and changing as a character. The side characters are sometimes on the page, like Arun (an Asian,) but not as often as Sunny. Dedicating more page time to them would help though. It appears Sunny stopped judging herself mostly by herself, with help from other people, but there wasn't a support network. Perhaps people didn't understand problems like this back then in the late 1970s? (If so, then there's one downside to living in that decade.) The lighter scenes like when Sunny plays Dungeons and Dragons (a contemporary game at that period) with her friends is a jarring juxtaposition compared to the heavier subjects. At least the finish is heartwarming as I see Sunny's arc come to a close. There is one more book in the Sunny series to read, Sunny Makes Her Case, but no library has it, so I'll write my thoughts on it once I obtain it. It sounds intriguing, though.