The first in a series for younger middle grade readers, this is a sweet and realistic story featuring Ryan Hart, a fourth grade girl with tons of spunk, heart, and personality. Ryan tries to always focus on the good and spread sunshine, even when her family is dealing with difficult economic circumstances and they are forced to move to a new (old) home. Her family life, friendships, and school scenes are portrayed in an honest and authentic way. The illustrations are a nice addition and it could be a good read-aloud in classrooms.

Ryan Hart is the youngest child. And her family has just announced that they are moving to a new house. Ryan struggles with the changes but learns there are many "ways to make sunshine" when life presents her with challenges.

Incredibly relatable, slice of life type stories. I love Renee Watson.

Ryan Hart is a fourth grade girl who is spunky, loves to create things in the kitchen and tries to live up to the meaning of her name: leader. When I first saw the cover I just knew it was going to be a delightful book. As an educator, I will certainly be book talking and recommending this to readers! There are pictures randomly placed throughout the book, which are a nice touch. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Ryan is a fourth grader who's struggling a bit.  She wants to be a leader (her name means king!) but it's hard sometimes.  It's hard when her family has to move into a smaller house because her dad lost his job.  It's hard when her best friend also moves, but into a bigger, fancier house and has lots of new friends.  It's hard when people expect a lot of you, but Ryan is awesome and wants to keep getting better.  Lots of kids are going to wish Ryan was their friend too!  An excellent new middle grade novel.

"Ways to Make Sunshine" is the perfect book for young girls to feel empowered in their own appearance at such an early age. Ryan Hart is a great example for others to not stray from positivity when the going gets rough. Her positivity isn't cheesy or too kiddish for children to get bored of. I cried closer to the ending, but no spoilers! I believe this book has so many relatable things young girls face and don't get to see or hear on television. Ryan also comforts herself when she knows there isn't enough money in her household which doesn't get talked a lot about in life. This book comforts topics that aren't recognized. This is also a great transition from picture to chapter books. I would recommend to every girl who needs sunshine.

Very cute easy chapter book. Ryan is a great protagonist with a strong personality and interests, some flaws, a wonderful heart. She has a fully formed world here which includes both problems and joy. Chapters were often vignettes but had a cohesive enough arc for there to be development (though the hair clip storyline was a little lackluster). Highly recommended to add to collections.

I adore this book!!! I could not put it down!! I love everything about it! I can't wait to share it with readers at my school! I love the "realness" of this book and know my readers will too!

Perfect addition to 3rd and 4th grade classrooms. Watson created an engaging voice for Ryan Hart as she navigates her way through day-to-day experiences. I look forward to the rest of the series. I hope the book will have wide readership.

I loved the character Ryan and her family! I liked their reasonings for the names they gave the children, and the story lines of growing into their names. I loved the thinking creatively about how to be involved in the talent show uniquely without necessarily following the exact prescription for what it means to participate. When the story ended, I wanted more time with this family and more of their experiences.

A delightful, uplifting read for third and fourth grade readers. Ryan Hart is in fourth grade and it is a year of many changes for her and her family. While not always happy about the changes that occur in her life, she adjusts, always trying to find the positive. While mostly known for her contributions to young adult literature, Renee Watson is fast becoming a new voice for young and middle grade chapter books.

"If we can't go to the parade,
let's have one here."

I saw this quote from Ways to Make Sunshine today, and I had to read this book. 

Ryan Hart is the perfect character in the perfect story for these unsettling times. Ryan's family is moving to a smaller house. Ryan's dad, who had lost his job, has just accepted a new job, but the new job is for less money.  Ryan and her brother, Ray, have frequent, petty squabbles. Sometimes Ryan and her friends have difficulties. Should Ryan obey her mother and keep her new, fancy hairdo dry or should she take on a rival for her friend's affections and get her hair wet? 

These are the sort of issues Ryan and her family face in this little children's book, the sort of ordinary troubles families face everywhere every day. Ryan's parents are the wonderfully reassuring parents we all wish we had. They continually remind their children how much they love them, and they encourage their children to push themselves to be better than they are, and they never crush them with their discipline or their expectations.

And Ryan, surrounded by that ring of love from her parents and supportive friends, does become better than she was, finding a way to make sunshine in the rain, rising up to become a leader. 

It's delightfully refreshing to spend time with these characters today.

Thank you to Netgalley & Bloomsbury for an eARC of this sweet story. As someone who LOVED Ramona Quimby as a kid, I absolutely LOVE Ryan Hart & her family. I loved seeing Ryan conquering her fears and her love for cooking. I want so many more stories about this sweet little family and I can’t wait to pick up a finished copy when this book comes out!! ❤️

Very well written book. It gives the reader a peek into the life of Ryan, who’s in fourth grade. As with anyone, life is full of ups and downs. Difference is how Ryan handles all the changes. Her parents often remind her of the meaning of her name and to live up to it. She challenges herself to be brave and step out of her comfort zone. Love the ways Ryan finds to make the sun shine wherever she goes. The book is a good example for young kids to see that they are not alone when unwanted things happen and to how to view them in a more positive way in each circumstance.
I received an advanced reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for my volunteer review.

Ways to Make Sunshine is a sweet story about finding the brighter spot in difficult situations. It is an excellent lower MG that will appeal to young readers for its honest portrayal of economic struggles, friendship, and family.

This book was touted as this generation's Ramona Quimby, and it did not disappoint. A sweet little girl named Ryan (not a boy’s name - her name) goes through a bunch of changes while traversing life as a fourth grader. She does it with strength, silliness, and a whole lot of heart. Can’t wait to hand this to all the kids who need more Beverly Cleary-esque reading in their life.

Welcome Back!


My Goodreads currently-reading shelf is overflowing with finished books that I need to get a review up for and yet here I am reading more! So when my currently-reading shelf actually turns to a crazy high number like 100 its all my own fault and I will have actually read like 75 or more of those and just never wrote the review. This week alone I have finished like four books or graphic novels and then started like three others. So here I am finally sitting down and writing the reviews to hopefully help my Goodreads currently-reading shelf a little bit! I picked up Ways to Make Sunshine off my Netgalley TBR the other day, I have read other books by this author and I wanted something I thought I would read pretty quickly.


SPOILERS AHEAD


In this story, we meet Ryan, a fourth-grader whose going through a lot of changes in her life. For example, her dad lost his job at the post office and recently found a new job but this new job pays less and has him working nights. Also, Ryan's family will be moving to a new house because their current rental house will be sold and on top of this they plan to sell one of the family cars. This is a lot of change for anyone let alone a fourth grader but Ryan is up for it! Ryan is going to have to find ways to make the best of her new situations and live up to the meaning of her name!


I want to start by saying this is a middle-grade book and I have been reading way more middle-grade books lately and have been loving them. This one was cute and the ending was definitely unexpected. I think when it comes to reading middle grade I tend to prefer mysteries so this was a new experience for me. I loved the illustrations that were scattered throughout the story and I honestly felt like these added something extra special to certain parts. I would highly recommend Renee Watson's books if you have not read any of them yet. I am going to be giving this one four stars on Goodreads.





P.S. After a little research I learned that this might be a series if it is I will totally read the next one!

True #ownvoices middle grade novels while becoming more prevalent are still a minority. Renee Watson does a remarkable job of these books and this book is no different.

The characters have depth and clarity and the plot is interesting and keeps the reader engaged. Ryan is a character that middle grade readers will relate to and her circumstances are relatable. This is a series that I know will capture my students. It will be a great addition to our school library collection.

The publisher generously provided me with a copy of the book upon request on NetGalley. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.

I really enjoyed this chapter book. The characters were well-developed and the writing was really good. Ryan is spunky, funny, and loving. I liked the family dynamics as well as the friendships. This is a great transition book from early chapter books to longer ones. I liked the illustrations sprinkled throughout. Great start to a new series!

The whole time I was reading I kept thinking this was written to be the next great series that kids can relate to, and then I read that it’s Renee’s version of Ramona Quimby series and I couldn’t be more excited. It ended where I have so many questions, but I know that Ryan’a stories are just beginning.

There were so many amazing themes intertwined, the most of all being to love who you were born to be.

My favorite quote from the ARC: “How you wear your hair is your choice and no matter what you choose, it’s not going to determine if you’re beautiful or not. The only thing that will determine that is how you treat others.”

Ryan is learning how to live up to her name that means “leader” and along the way she encounters fear, worry, jealousy, and many emotions she can’t quite play out. She hears her dads voice telling her to be a leader and she learns to think before she acts - great lessons to share and discuss in the classroom.

As a teacher, I also marked several spots for notice and note signposts!

Can’t wait for more of the Hart family!

Fourth-grader Ryan Hart is a leader, even though she doesn’t see it yet. Ryan’s parents named her as they did because they wanted her to live up to the name, which means “king.” Ryan has stage fright and compares herself to others, feeling as though she cannot live up to expectations or be as “good” at something as they are. 

Ryan’s family is going through some changes that make her feel uneasy, such as moving to a new rental home that’s smaller, having less money for the brand-name items she wants (like Tillamook ice cream), and one of her best friends moving to a new neighborhood. However, Ryan creates her own sunshine in the midst of trouble. She is a child who tries to make the best out of the situations in her life, but is also very much a fourth-grader. She allows herself to be goaded into a strange contest to “prove” she is the best friend of another girl. She argues with her brother. Etc. 

This is a book I highly recommend. It’s a sweet, realistic story that will engage many children, and it would be a good read-aloud in second-fourth grade classrooms.  

I will post this review on Goodreads a month before the publication date, as requested.