Thank you to NetGalley & Capstone for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book so much. The characters were so loveable and the plot was amazing. Even though this is a middle grade book, it thought really important lessons in such a nice way. The main topic of the book might be friendship but it talked (even if not in depth) about divorce and how hard it can be for a kid to deal with it. I loved the narrative so much, it was so nice to read and it thought really important lessons. It’s really nice, also, that we got to see the story of the argument from both Sybella and Cora’s point and it was fun to try and connect the dots about what happened. I also adored how the diary ties everything together and the parallels were really nice to see as well! This is certainly a must-read for MG readers.

I had the opportunity to read a NetGalley digital ARC of this middle grade novel in exchange for a review. Middle grade readers will definitely be able to relate to the ups and downs of friendship at this sensitive age. At this age, kids can be friends one minute and enemies the next, and usually the rift in the friendship is over a misunderstanding. Once the relationship suffers this kind of blow, it can be really hard for both former friends to extend themselves and/or apologize for what happened.
Cora and Sybella have been best friends since second grade when Sybella was a new student and Cora brought her into the imaginary world she inhabited with her twin brother, Kyle. Through the years, the three were inseparable. But when they entered fifth grade and were assigned to separate classrooms, they also started to pursue separate interests and there were strains placed on the friendship by Marnie, new to the school. Add to that Cora’s unhappiness over her parents’ divorce and her mom’s yearlong job in Belgium, and a simple mistake blows up into a huge chasm in her friendship with Sybella.
This friendship drama is set against the backdrop of Cora’s father’s work as a garbologist at the University of California. The family’s efforts to use less, recycle more, and keep trash to a minimum along with Cora’s participation on the Trash Team at school could definitely inspire kids to hold their own “Trashlympics” and “Capture the Trash” events in their own communities. At the least it might help kids think about how to minimize their own impact on the environment.
This book comes out in August and would be a good realistic fiction book to have on the shelf. It would be good for readers who enjoy relationship drama, particularly for those in grades five and up.

This sounded really interesting, but unfortunately I wasn't able to read it. I tried several times to download it and was unable to open it with any program I have. I emailed about it and never received a response.