ANNOTATION

Nine-year-old Amber Brown faces further complications because of her parents' divorce when her father plans to move back from Paris and she must decide which parent she will be with on Thanksgiving.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Finally, everything is beginning to work out for Amber Brown. Her mom's boyfriend, Max, has invited Amber and her mom to Walla Walla, Washington, for Thanksgiving, and Amber's dad is coming home from Paris to live nearby. Amber finally feels like she has all of her family around her. Life couldn't be better -- until, that is, everything gets turned upside down again. As usual, author Paula Danziger covers adolescent decisions and worries with finesse and understanding. Feisty Amber Brown will leave everyone cheering, even though she's no longer the only girl in class with a two-color name.

SYNOPSIS

Things couldn't be any better for Amber Brown. Mom's boyfriend Max has just invited Amber and her mom to Walla, Walla, Washington for Thanksgiving. On top of that Amber's dad is finally coming home from Paris to live nearby. Now he can spend lots of time with her. Everything seems to be going just great until Amber's dad calls and tells her that he wants her to spend Thanksgiving with him. What is she going to do? The adults leave it up to Amber to decide, but she really feels as though they have put her in the middle. What is Amber Brown going to do? Amber Brown is really feeling blue.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Now in fourth grade, the unsinkable Amber Brown copes with the fallout from her parents' divorce in this characteristically energetic series installment. Ages 7-10. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Children's Literature - Barbara Youngblood

Danziger provides another look into the not so ordinary life of Amber Brown. This time she is particularly excited about seeing her father again after his long absence in Europe. We get to see the many facets of Amber's life as a student, friend and daughter of divorced parents. Her nervousness in having to decide with which parent she should spend her Thanksgiving break is heart rending. Children in real life situations can surely relate to her dilemma. Amber meets the new girl in her class with another colorful name, Kelly Green, and finds that they can be friends and share some good times together. If you've enjoyed the other books in this series, you're sure to enjoy spending a bit more time with this delightful young girl.

School Library Journal

Gr 2-4-Amber Brown has two problems. When a new girl named Kelly Green enters her class, the spirited fourth grader must accept that she is no longer the only student with a colorful name. Her second dilemma is much more serious: she has been invited to spend Thanksgiving with her mother and her mother's fiance in Washington state. Her father, however, is moving back to the U.S. after living abroad and would like her to spend the holiday with him in New York. Knowing that whatever she decides will hurt someone she loves, Amber struggles with her predicament and finally settles on a thoughtful solution. A likable nine year old with much common sense, she is willing to talk about her feelings openly and honestly and her first-person narration allows readers to be privy to these thoughts and emotions. Another winner in an appealing contemporary series.-Maryann H. Owen, Racine Public Library, WI