Ms. Bixby's Last Day, written by John David Anderson, reviewed by Kalie Mehaffy

Summary: Ms. Bixby is Topher, Brand, and Steve's sixth grade teacher, and according to them, she's one of the 'good ones'. Unfortunately, she won't be able to finish out the school year because she has cancer, and the boys are devastated, but they console themselves with the knowledge that at least there is going to be a going away party before she has to start her vigorous treatment. Her cancer progresses faster than anticipated, however, and she has to leave before her going away part. Topher, Brand, and Steve decide to skip school to throw their beloved Ms. Bixby the best going away party ever, no matter what tries to stop them.

Straight Talk for Librarians: I loved this book. It was funny, thoughtful, and tone appropriate for sixth graders. John David Anderson did an amazing job combining real life, heavy topics with the language of eleven year old boys. I really liked that Anderson never treated his audience like they could not understand heavier topics. I think this book is a must-have for any library, be it classroom, school, or public. I think it would be an amazing read-aloud for sixth grade classrooms. There are multiple perspectives, but they are each labled and seperated by chapter. If there are students who have had personal experiences with losing someone they love to cancer, you might want to check in with them as they read, as the ending is a bit sad, but I think the language that Anderson uses to discuss it is amazing. I am absolutely going to add this novel to my library.