Beverly, Right Here wasn't as good of a read as its prequel, Louisiana's Way Home, was. This book felt like it didn't have enough content in it to really wow me. However, Beverly was a great protagonist and the story was still touching.

I loved the aspect of family that is ever so present in this series so far. Beverly finds home in the form of people that aren't related to her - her mother is an alcoholic and only cares for her own well-being (or lack thereof), and her father isn't present in Beverly's life. While some things are pretty unrealistic in this book, such as Beverly getting away with driving a car almost every day at the age of fourteen and being able to live with a random woman and get a job - also at the age of fourteen - the characters' emotions and reasoning behind these emotions were completely realistic, which made the novel enjoyable.

Beverly and the people around her equate for a good plot. While Beverly, Right Here isn't my favorite book by this author, it's still really good for the amount of pages.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Kate Dicamillo never disappoints me. I love Beverly. I love the way that she reaches out to others without realizing that she is doing so.

A wonderful novel about a young woman who is learning how to take care of herself while she takes care of others along the way.

Kate DiCamillo primarily writes standalone stories, but Beverly, Right Here is the conclusion of her first trilogy. Raymie Nightingale was the first in this series, where we meet three friends: Raymie, Louisiana, and Beverly. Louisiana's Way Home came next, and this is the conclusion.

14-year-old Beverly struggles in her home, so after she buries her beloved dog, she spontaneously leaves town. She finds herself living with an older woman in a trailer home, finding a job at a fish diner, and connecting with locals. 

Through these experiences, Beverly opens herself up to new friendships while mourning losses in her life. We witness her coming into her own, finding inner strength, and recognizing beauty around her.

Kate DiCamillo has a way of writing that feels natural, raw, and beautiful. She conveys truths simply but powerfully.  Beverly, Right Here, along with the other books in the series, feel as if they're geared towards older children. They're not as lighthearted as her earlier works, but they are important and can pull out your emotions as they speak to truths of the importance of having dreams and finding friends who are your chosen family.

(I received a digital ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.)

I discovered something about myself as I read this: I'm not the biggest fan of quirky, coming-of-age stories for middle grade. To me, they often come off as inauthentic and unbelievable - an adult author trying too hard to impart wisdom upon young readers using both humor and what my cynical self can only describe as emotional manipulation.

I say this and yet I still give this 3 stars. It didn't frustrate me as much as the other highly buzzed, quirky coming-of-age book of the year, Coyote Sunrise . The writing is beautiful (this is Kate DiCamillo after all), and I'm pretty sure my middle-grade self would've liked this story of a struggling girl running away from her tough life and finding love and support in a faraway town. Beverly was easy to root for, even when she would say things that I can't remotely imagine a 14 year old girl saying so eloquently. I also still feel compelled to read Louisiana's Way Home, so I'm not ready to give up on the quirky coming-of-age stories just yet.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. It will be published September 24th 2019 by Candlewick Press.

I read this twice because I lost the notes I made the first time. It was not a hardship. In fact, I think I enjoyed it more the second time. I suspect that if I read it again, I might appreciate it even more. I did not expect this.

In August 1979, Beverly's dog, Buddy, dies. Fourteen year old Beverly Tapinsky, overwhelmed by the empty feeling inside her, leaves home.

She's lucky.

She catches a ride with her cousin to Tamaray Beach. Right away, thanks to the waitress, Freddie, she lands a job bussing tables at Mr C's, an ocean side fish and chip joint. Doris and Charles, who work in the kitchen, make sure that she is treated well by Freddie and Mr Denby.

Next, in the Seahorse Trailer Court, she is befriended by an elderly lady. Iola Jenkins. Iola provides a place for her to stay. In exchange for a home, Beverly just has to drive Iola where she wants to go.

At the corner store, Beverly connects with Elmer. After an inauspicious first encounter, the two become friends and romance blossoms.

Bit by bit that empty feeling inside our tough heroine is filled up with all the people she meets.

Kate DiCamillo creates characters that crawl inside your heart and fill up empty places inside you that you didn't even know you had. Probably because I am a senior myself, I especially appreciate the relationship between Iola and Beverly. Both of them are vulnerable and at risk in their own way. Middle grade readers will most likely find her connection with Elmer most satisfying. The honesty between the two of them is what I would wish for them in their own relationships.

As I'm writing this review, I'm tempted to leave it and go back and devour the book again. I want to return to the honesty and tenderness of the Tamaray Beach community one more time. I'm confident I will uncover more riches if I do. Actually, I think I'll just go back and reread all the books in the Three Rancheros series again. I suspect a lot of readers will feel like this after reading Beverly Tapinsky's story.

The third book in Kate DiCamillo series about 3 spunky girls, each on their own mission. Each book can definitely be read as a stand-alone, but I recommend reading them all in whatever order you choose but just read them.

Beverly is only 14 when this book begins in the late 1970s, she is sad and missing her dog so what else can she do but run away from home. Thus the adventure begins. Just like the other 2 books I loved the quirky situations she gets herself into, her thoughts and actions define her unique characteristics.

Beverly was a fun read, with an eclectic cast of characters, a heartfelt storyline that focused on friendship, loneliness and self-discovery. With humor mixed in Kate DiCamillo is one of my goto for middle-grade books.

My thanks to the publisher (via Netgalley) for an advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

“Where she has been had never truly felt like home.”

After her beloved dog, Buddy, dies, Beverly feels like there is no reason to stay at home any longer. After all, her mother doesn't care about her. “Beverly’s mother didn’t watch out for anybody but herself.” So she grabs a ride with her cousin, Joe Travis, and ends up in Tamaray Beach. "It was hot. It was August. It was 1979. Beverly Tapinski was fourteen years old."

A cast of characters spring up in Beverly’s life at just the right time. There’s Iola, who lives in the Seahorse Court, an RV community. She sees Beverly and begins to ask questions. “When you get as old as me everything is your business." Soon they decide to work out an agreement: Beverly can stay with Iola in exchange for Beverly driving Iola to the grocery store and to the VFW for bingo. See, Iola’s son, Tommy Jr., made her sign a contract promising not to drive.

Then, there are the people at Mr. C’s restaurant. Freddie, the waitress. It’s her idea to hire Beverly to bus tables. She keeps saying this is only a quick stop on her journey, that she has bigger dreams than being a waitress. “This is the end of the road unless you have a dream." Then there’s Mr. Denny, the owner of the restaurant, who’s not great with paperwork, so he pays Beverly in cash ... for now. Charles and Doris, overworked and underpaid, round out the staff. Then there’s Freddie’s obnoxious boyfriend.

As Beverly settles in, she begins to understand what family is all about ... caring for others who care about your well being. It’s something she hasn’t really felt before and it makes some of that tough interior soften a bit.

Another winner from Kate DiCamillo. Her quirky characters, lush language and plucky heroine will make this a favorite with her readers. For ages 4th grade and up.

Thank you NetGalley and Candlewick Press for an Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for my honest review!

Beverly, Right Here is the third installment in the Three Rancheros series that Kate DiCamillo began with Raymie Nightingale and continued with Louisiana's Way Home. In Beverly, Right Here, Beverly is a young teenage runaway living in Florida in 1979. Her beloved dog has recently died and she has been taking care of herself for years anyway (her mother is an alcoholic) so she decides the time is right for her to leave home. She gets a job busing tables and befriends an elderly woman living alone in a trailer park. The woman, showing true hospitality, opens up her heart and home to the young girl. Beverly doesn't think that she needs anyone--doesn't think that she should need anyone--but she learns that caring about others is exactly what she needs.

Beverly, Right Here is the third book by DiCamillo in the Raymie Nightingale world. This time the star is Beverly Tapinski, a tough talking yet sensitive teen, who hits the open road after burying her beloved dog, Buddy. She ends up in a small coastal town where she befriends a bevy of quirky characters from Iola, a trusting senior citizen who offers Iola a bed and a never-ending supply of tuna melts, to Elmer, an acne plagued store clerk with a love for art and a mind for science. Beverly's new community is richly drawn despite DiCamillo's spare writing style and you'll find yourself smiling at everyone's idiosyncrasies and charm. For a short novel, there is a well-spring of material to spark conversation of the bookish variety. Beverly, Right Here would be a great choice for a book club as it's rich with symbols and themes that readers have to work to interpret.

Yet another win for Kate DiCamillo. I’ve loved this series of feisty, thoughtful girls!

Beverly caught me right away. I just devoured this one.

Besides a wonderful story, I want to flag here from the educator side of things how useful this book would be. I love that this series could be used beautifully in the classroom (because of length, honesty/tone, lovable characters, great writing... the list goes on!). The length factor especially (as well as how you can read each one in any order) makes it perfect for small book groups. Also it would be a great way to set kids up to have entryways into the next book. They’ll definitely want to trade and read with peers from another book group etc. It is not only a perfect set up but of course.. it’s great writing and each book is solidly beautiful, poignant, and fun. I’m already itching to write a book group unit / read aloud unit on these books. They’re excellent for the classroom ( my only way of making them better would be more racial/cultural rep). .

I can’t decide which one is my favorite. So, I guess you’ll have to read them all, pass them around. The best part is you’re going to find yourself immersed in some important life reminders, and will fall in love with the humans in these stories each and every time.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is the best ARC I have received in a while.

This book just came out 9/24 so it is the perfect book to bring into your classroom libraries this Fall (and bring in the whole series if you don’t have it!) It would also be the perfect book to bring in if you need an engaging boost for a Winter unit.

When I wrote a review of Louisiana’s Way Home, I began, “Seldom do I like a sequel better than the first book, but I’ve found an exception.” I had jumped at the chance offered by Net Galley for an advance reading copy of that book where Kate DiCamillo revisits a previous novel for her protagonist. Now from the Three Rancheros friendship of Raymie, Beverly, and Louisiana in Raymie Nightingale, Kate returns to tell Beverly’s story, and again I read an advance reading copy from Net Galley focusing on the last of the trio.

This book, set four years after Raymie Nightingale in August 1979, focuses on Beverly as the protagonist, but has an array of colorful secondary characters. Beverly has just buried her dog Buddy under the orange trees when she decides to leave home, claiming that is different from the times she ran away as a kid because now she will make it on her own. In a phone call effort to let her mother know she is okay, she notices words etched in the glass of the phone booth, “In a crooked little house by a crooked little sea,” that sounds to her like the beginning of a story. She is right.

Beverly is taken in by elderly Lola who has promised her children not to drive the Pontiac in her yard after she mixed up the forward and reverse and plowed into Bleeker’s Insurance building. She needs someone to take her to the VFW for bingo, seemingly as much as Beverly needs a place to stay. Beverly, who hates fish, winds up eating tuna melts with regularity because that’s what Lola knows how to fix, and busing tables in a fish lunch restaurant. Freddie, their only waitress, who may or may not be fair about splitting tips with her, assures her that dreaming big will get her into better things.

In spite of her fierce struggle to be independent of other people and to keep them from dependence on her, Beverly’s life wraps around her immediate community in the restaurant and around others she meets in the small town, including acne-faced Elmer who has plans to go to Dartmouth. Mixed throughout, she has things she knows she needs to write in a letter to Raymie.

I am left pondering which of the three books I really liked the best and thinking I may need a rerun to find out. So be forewarned, if you finish this book and have already read Raymie Nightingale and Louisiana’s Way Home, there may arise an uncontrollable urge to go back and read all three back to back. If you haven’t read the others, I highly recommend that you begin at the beginning and read them in order.

Two words: Kate DiCamillo. What more to say? Once again, DiCamillo makes us fall head over heels with a less than perfect character. The trio is complete! Don't miss out.

I was given a free copy of this book from #netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Beverly Tapinski is the third girl in the trio including Raymie Nightengale and Louisiana Elefante. Beverly runs away from home after her dog Buddy dies. Her mom is an alcoholic and she doesn't even leave her a note. When Beverly arrives in Tamaray, she gets a job bussing tables at Mr. C's Fish Restaurant and gets taken in by a sweet old lady named Iola. Beverly ends up meeting and bonding with a ragtag group of characters. As always, Kate DiCamillo is a master at character development and this book continues that trend. Delightful read!

Beverly Tapinski is all done with her family, her home and her town. She has run away before, but this time it's for good. After hitching a ride, she ends up in Tamaray, Florida - no home, no job, nowhere to go - completely on her own. Using her strong street smarts, she has soon secured a job as the bus girl at a local fish restaurant, and housing with an elderly widow named Iola Jenkins. She spends her days wandering up and down the A1A in constant reflection of her choices.

The trailer park setting, thick with Florida's humid air and crazy characters, reminded me instantly of DiCamillo's "Because of Winn-Dixie", and this story has similar themes of abandonment, neglect and a young woman searching for a family. I think that Beverly and Opal would have gotten along famously, complaining about their absent mothers and incomplete family units. A constant doubter of other people's motives, Beverly is quick with a sharp comment or defensive remark, but like Opal, she finds people in her community that are understanding of her troubles and let her in. Watching her transform and open up to her new family was a slow process, but one that is well done on DiCamillo's part. It's worth the reader's time.

The ending of this story is unexpected, and without giving too much away, I'm wondering if Kate wanted us to draw conclusions on our own.

Beverly, Right Here
By: Kate Dicamillo
Candlewick Press
Candlewick
Children's Fiction
256 pages
Publish Date September 24, 2019
#Beverly Right Here #Net Galley
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This was a fun and quick read. I gave this book 4 stars. It isn't one of her best stories but still enjoyable.
This is the third book in this trilogy about three girls who have some problems with their families.
Beverly rans away from home after she buries her dog Buddy under the orange trees. She gets herself a job bussing table in a small town café. She befriends an older lonely woman and stays with her for the summer. It tells about her adventures and how she feels and the people who come into her life during the summer. I haven't read the first book in the series but did read the second about Louisiana (in fact I have a review up for this book). It is a cute story and one you should read if you have read the other books in this series. I will be reading the first book now that I have read these two so I can have the full picture of these three friends.

Readers first met the Three Rancheros in in 1975 through 10 year old Raymie Nightingale. In 1977 Louisiana Elephante was the 12 year old main character, and now it is 1979, and the story centers on 14 year old Beverly Tapinski. After Raymie helps Beverly bury her dog, Buddy, Beverly decides it is time to run away from her alcoholic mother, which she does. She hitches a ride with a cousin whom she is not particularly fond, and winds up in Tamaray Beach, Florida. At this point, Di Camillo begins to soar with the cast of characters The plot revolves around the restaurant and staff where Beverly finds a job cleaning tables, a trailer park where a cheery woman takes her in and shares tuna melts, and the local convenience store with coin operated horse that goes nowhere, and clerk who becomes a real friend. This is supposed to be the end of the trilogy, but there seem to be some loose threads, so maybe we will get an invitation to catch up with the stories of the Three Rancheros i a couple of years. Great for character development and for themes of what is a family and what is a friend.

Kate DiCamillo brings her talent again, (as if we were worried, we weren’t), with Beverly, Right Here. We get to see her a little more grown up after the previous two books. And boy does she break your heart. I really appreciate how Kate DiCamillo tackles some harder and heavier topics for kids. She doesn’t talk to them like they’re stupid, or approach subjects when they’re not ready, but had this gift to take them through the hard situation at their level.

I had never read Kate DiCamillo until a year and a half ago when several of my students had to read Because of Winn-Dixie for their third-grade class. I have been hooked since.

I’m a huge fan of coming of age literature. DiCamillo does an outstanding job in showing us how sometimes we have to choose our family whether that includes a favorite pet or an elderly woman who is fighting to live on her own. It is ok for family to be those friends you pick up on the way during your life’s journey. Love comes in many different forms and sometimes when we least expect it.

Beverly, Right Here is another perfect read-aloud book to promote discussion with the middle-graders in your life. I enjoy how DiCamillo left the story open-ended as we have the hope to visit the Three Rancheros again.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, Candlewick Press, through NetGalley. Any and all opinions expressed in the above review are entirely my own.

Have things ever been so bad that you felt the need to run away? Beverly was done living with a mother that didn't even care if she was around. She had to bury her beloved dog, Buddy. Louisiana had moved to Georgia. There was nothing to keep her at home so when she saw her cousin visiting from Tamaray, a town near the ocean, she jumped in the car with him and left. She didn't' tell her mother, she didn't tell Raymie, she just left. In Tamaray she got a job bussing tables at Mr. C's fish restaurant and found a place to stay. Iola was standing outside her trailer at the Seahorse Court when Beverly walked by. Beverly promised to drive Iola to bingo (even though she was fourteen and not supposed to be driving) in exchange for a place to stay. Beverly is just going through the motions of life with no happiness at all, that is until she walks into Zoom City and meets Elmer. As the people in this seaside town start to get into Beverly's heart, she actually learns what it is like to be happy. But will this happiness last? What will happen in Iola's son finds out that his mother has a stranger living with her? What will happen at work when the waitress, Freddie, and her horribly mean boyfriend bust into the restaurant and threaten the employees and steal money from Mr. C? Will Beverly and her new friends survive? And what will happen between Beverly and Elmer when he goes off to college? Read the third installment in the Three Rancheros series by best-selling author, Kate DiCamillo!!

Beverly, Right Here is probably my favorite of all three of the Three Rancheros books. Raymie and Louisiana have a special place in my heart but I think Beverly just took center stage! This book is so sad and I just want to wrap my arms around Beverly. Also, Elmer is probably one of my favorite characters. He has endured a lot in school yet he loves art, poetry, and has not let a bully dampen his spirits. Friendship is the main theme in this book, and age does not matter! This is a must read for 2019!!!!!!

I am more convinced than ever that Kate DiCamillo is magic. I have read every single one of her books, fallen in love with countless characters at this point, and continue to be in awe of her ability to craft worlds that are equal parts gloriously heart-warming and achingly gut-wrenching.

BEVERLY, RIGHT HERE is Kate DiCamillo's latest middle grade novel, and completes the THREE RANCHEROS trilogy that includes National Book Award finalist RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE (2016) and LOUSIANA'S WAY HOME (2018).

In this third novel, we get to hear Beverly Tapinski's story in her own words. Beverly's mother is a neglectful alcoholic, and she hasn't seen or heard from her father since he walked out years ago. Her dog, Buddy, has just died and she and Raymie have buried him beneath the orange trees in Beverly's backyard. There doesn't seem to be anything left for her here, and so Beverly makes the decision to leave. Not just run away - which she's done before - but actually walk away and not look back. She finds herself in the town of Tamaray Beach, not that far from her hometown, but far enough to seem a world away.

At fourteen, Beverly is used to the constant disappointment other people bring and is determined to make it on her own. She has no intention of forming any ties, but the people she encounters have other ideas. There's Iola Jenkins, the elderly woman who lives in a pink trailer with a cat named Nod. Iola insists Beverly stay with her and feeds her tuna melt sandwiches every day, and Nod takes an instant liking to her despite Beverly's insistence that she hates cats.

Then there's the staff at Mr. C's, the fish fry restaurant down by the beach where she's landed herself a job. And there's Elmer, who works at Zoom City and hands out dimes to little kids so they can ride the metal pony that sits outside the store, perpetually moving but going nowhere. As with all of DiCamillo's books, the cast of characters in BEVERLY, RIGHT HERE is richly realized, fully human in their flaws and their strengths.

At its heart, this is a story not just about a girl searching for and finding herself, but about the power of community and the need for belonging. This is one of those books that's worth returning to again and again, because each new reading will reveal more truths, both simple and profound. It's a layered, nuanced look at grief and disappointment, hope and healing. It's about the small acts of kindness that occur every day in a world that can be so cruel. And it's about discovering where you belong and finding the people who will stand by your side while you figure it out.