The Other Half of Happy

Summary

This immersive and beautifully written novel follows the story of Quijana, a girl in pieces.

Quijana must figure out which parts of herself are most important, and which pieces come together to make her whole.

This is a heartfelt poetic portrayal of a girl growing up, fitting in, and learning what it means to belong.

• Lyrical middle grade debut from author Rebecca Balcárcel
• A diverse and family-centered story that resonates with anyone who remembers, or is going through, growing pains
• Inclusively embraces real life experiences with biracial, autistic, and gay characters

One-half Guatemalan, one-half American: When Quijana's Guatemalan cousins move to town, her dad seems ashamed that she doesn't know more about her family's heritage.

One-half crush, one-half buddy: When Quijana meets Zuri and Jayden, she knows she's found true friends. But she can't help the growing feelings she has for Jayden.

One-half kid, one-half grown-up: Quijana spends her nights Skyping with her ailing grandma and trying to figure out what's going on with her increasingly hard-to-reach brother.

• A wonderful gift for bilingual and bicultural readers, introspective tweens and teens, and parents and educators
• Perfect for those who love the heart of Matt de la Peña, the honesty of Meg Medina, and the poetry of Kate DiCamillo
• Add it to the shelf with books like We Were Here by Matt de la Peña, Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina, and I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez