I have been wanting to read a book by Pam Munoz Ryan (Hey we have the same first name!!) for a while now.
Echo is a delight. The book is mildly complicated so it’s probably best for older tweens. By complicated I mean that there are several stories interwoven with one common thread. If your reader is not able to follow a story like this, it will seem like work.
I’ll admit, it was tough for me to adjust to each different characters’ story after I had just gotten emotionally connected to them. The payoff, of course, in the end was so worth it! If your reader loves history, music, people of color, good triumphing over evil, etc, kind of stories, then this is the book for them. As a former musician, the music references within the story take you deep inside yourself and you’re able to connect with the characters so much more.
The fact that each child overcame difficult life situations will also uplift the reader. I was so sad the book had to end.
And OH how I want a harmonica! Also book 1 of the 2016 Diversity Reading Challenge! One of the main characters is a young Hispanic girl.