The Exact Location of Home
By Rachel Sarah,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Moving story of boy losing his home and finding resilience.
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What you will—and won't—find in this book.
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What's the Story?
In THE EXACT LOCATION OF HOME, Kirby "Zig" Zigonski hasn't seen his father, a wealthy developer, for more than a year. Zig doesn't understand why his mother won't reach out to his father, especially after their landlady evicts them for not keeping up with the rent.
When they have to move to the local shelter for homeless people, Zig does everything he can to hide his new living situation from his eighth-grade classmates. There are realistic scenes of poverty and resilience, as well as an environmental thread about saving wildlife and a mystery to solve as Zig and his best friend, Gianna, follow geocaching clues to try to find Zig's father.
Is It Any Good?
This is an authentic, moving story about of a 13-year-old boy struggling to understand why he's lost his home and his father as he tries to do the right thing at home and in school. The story begins on a quiet note, but the more you read, the more you uncover the poignant themes about struggling financially, longing for a missing parent, and facing shame among your peers.
Along the way, the story introduces big themes such as taking care of the environment and taking care of a loved one with dementia. This unsentimental, uncomfortable novel is a must-read about real life in the contemporary United States.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how being homeless is portrayed in The Exact Location of Home. What do you think it would be like to live in an unfamiliar shelter? How would eating, sleeping, or bathing be different?
How do you think being homeless could affect kids' ability to learn in school? How might it affect their friendships?
In your community, are there any new housing developments going up? How is this affecting the environment and local wildlife?
Book Details
- Author: Kate Messner
- Genre: Contemporary Fiction
- Topics: Adventures, Friendship, Great Boy Role Models, Middle School
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
- Publication date: September 12, 2017
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 8 - 12
- Number of pages: 256
- Available on: Paperback, Nook, Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: February 4, 2020
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