Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Saunders
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Girl works to clear her father of a crime in smart tale.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
When FROM THE DESK OF ZOE WASHINGTON opens, 12-year-old Zoe has received a letter from Marcus, the biological father she's never met. Marcus was sent to prison for murdering a classmate in his freshman year of college, before Zoe was born. She doesn't tell her parents that she got the letter, and she writes him back. Father and daughter develop a friendship, and Marcus tells Zoe that he's innocent. She investigates the case and sets out to find a possible alibi witness his attorney failed to track down. Other plot lines revolve around Zoe's evolving friendship with a boy her age and her aspirations to appear on a bake-off TV show and become a baker and cookbook author.
Is It Any Good?
This fun story covers several potentially scary topics with a light touch. In her debut novel, From the Desk of Zoe Washington, Janae Marks writes about a kid's experience of having a parent in prison, the day-to-day issues that come up for biracial families, and inequities in the criminal justice system. There are also some very sensitive and skillfully executed scenes of a boy and girl renegotiating their friendship as middle-school peer pressure begins to come between them. In one lovely sequence, the two young characters Zoe and Trevor, take their first trip on public transit without their parents: They almost miss their train, ride a stop in the wrong direction, and take a cab by themselves. The emotions in the story are accessible to younger readers, even if they're not ready to discuss all of the topics.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about when to be cautious and when to take a risk. What are the different risks Zoe takes over the course of From the Desk of Zoe Washington? Which ones seemed scariest to you?
Zoe and her father write to each other about their lives and bond by talking about music. Have you ever been separated from someone you were close to? What did you to maintain the relationship?
Zoe hides from her parents the fact that she's communicating with her biological father. Do you think Zoe made the right decision? Why do you think her grandmother and Trevor agree to help her keep her secret?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Family Life
- Topics : Cooking , Adventures , Friendship
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Katherine Tegen Books
- Publication date : January 14, 2020
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 12
- Number of pages : 304
- Available on : Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Kindle
- Last updated : September 29, 2025
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