A Soft Place to Land by Janae Marks is a great fit for middle grade readers. The chapters are not too long and the plot has just the right level of drama. Even though there are themes of parental conflict and childhood stress the story doesn’t become too sophisticated that a young reader would feel overwhelmed. I enjoyed reading it and was motivated to finish it because the main character Joy is so easy to root for! This will be an easy book for me to recommend to students since there are always kids who want books with dogs in them!

A feel-good story about a young girl redefining what home means.
🐶
Joy Taylor has had a lot of change in her life recently: her home was foreclosed on and their family had to move into an apartment building, which means they can’t afford piano lessons for her anymore. Scoring movies is Joy’s dream and that can’t happen until she learns how to play piano. Joy has also had to change schools and her parents are fighting a lot. In order to earn some money so she can buy a piano of her own, Joy teams up with Nora, her new neighbor, to start a dog walking business. It’s going well until Joy and Nora get in a fight and Joy loses one of the dogs. Nothing seems to be going right for her. Will she be able to find her own joy?
🐶
This coming-of-age middle grade book was beautiful and poignant. Marks does an amazing job of showing how hard it can be to be a pre-teen sometimes with her relatable characters and stories. This novel releases September 14. Thank you, Netgalley for the advanced readers copy.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of A Soft Place to Land for Janae Marks. While I like From the Desk of Zoe Washington better, A Soft Place to Land was an enjoyable book. Joy Taylor recently moved from her childhood house into a small apartment where she has to share a room with her sister. Her father lost his job, her parents are fighting more regularly and she misses her house tremendously. Because of her father's job loss, they no longer have the money to have her continue piano lessons which impacts her dream of becoming a film score composer. Luckily, she meets Nora, who lives in her building. Nora introduces Joy to other friends as well as The Hideout, a secret room in the building that no adults know about and the first rule is that no adults can ever be told about the space. In this space, Joy starts exchanging messages with an unknown kid in the building who seems in need of a friend. When the kid abruptly stops returning the messages, Joy becomes concerned.

Many kids will relate to the characters in this book in many different ways--those with parents who fight, those with parents who have lost a job, those with friend troubles, those who live in apartments. I think many mg readers will enjoy this book.

A Soft Place to Land
by Janae Marks
HarperCollins Children's Books
Katherine Tegen Books
Children's Fiction | Middle Grade | Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date 14 Sep 2021


I am reviewing a copy of A Soft Place to Land through HarperCollins Children’s Books/Katherine Tegen Books and Netgalley:




After her Father looses his job Joy Taylor finds that she and her family must move out of the home she lived her entire life in, and they have to move into a small apartment where she has to share a bedroom with her little sister. The apartment becomes a place for tense arguments between Mom and Dad. Hardest of all, Joy doesn’t have her music to escape through anymore. Without enough funds, her dreams of becoming a great pianist and one day, a film score composer have been put on hold.






A new neighbor, who fast becomes a friends let ‘s Joy in on the complex’s best-kept secret: the Hideout, a cozy refuge that only the kids are aware of. And it’s in this little hideaway that Joy starts exchanging secret messages with another kid in the building who also seems to be struggling, until abruptly, they stop writing back. What if they’re in trouble?






Joy I wants to find out who the mystery writer is fast, but between trying to raise funds for her music lessons, keeping on a brave face for her little sister, and worrying about her parents’ marriage, Joy isn’t sure how to keep her own head above water.



I give A Soft Place to Land five out of five stars!



Happy Reading!

I fell in love with Janae Marks's first book, so I was so excited to get the opportunity to review A Soft Place to Land. Let me tell you, it did not disappoint! The characters are relatable and real. They all have their struggles that they are going through, and they utilize their friendships to encourage and support each other. I would absolutely bring this book into my classroom as either a read-aloud or a small group novel. It has so many great discussion points, and it was beautifully written from beginning to end!

Another fantastic book for middle school by Janae Marks! This book tells the story of Joy a girl whose father recently lost his job, her family needed to move out of her childhood home, she is no longer able to afford piano lessons and her parents are consistently fighting. Through these challenges Joy makes new friends in her apartment building who show her a "hideout" they have in the bottom of the building that is only for kid and no adults know about. The story speaks to situations that middle school students are dealing with and is engaging. It shows the impact of her families changing socioeconomic status due to her dad loosing his job and due to the current economy/impact of Covid there are many children who would relate to this situation. It also shows how that impacts her parents relationship. Joy and her new best friend start walking dogs in order to save up for piano lessons because music is her passion and she is no longer able to attend her lessons. Without spoiling the book there is also some complex friendship dynamics and an argument/falling out the the kids need to resolve. It all comes together to tell a really fun story that has multiple elements that middle school readers would identify with.

Joy has a lot going in in her life starting with moving from a house to an apartment , dealing with her parents separation, and finding new friends . Really enjoyed Marks' 2nd novel.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the opportunity to read an arc version of this book!

A Soft Place to Land initially appealed to me because of the author, Janae Marks. When I read From the Desk of Zoe Washington, I loved the writer’s style, and I was excited to read more. I am also trying to read a lot of upcoming middle-grade fiction as I prepare to switch up my guided reading curriculum for next year. Overall, highly recommend this book for a middle-grade audience, but the content is a bit too young for high schoolers.

This book centers on Joy, who dreams of growing up and writing movie scores. She takes piano lessons and is very passionate about her dream, but things are changing. Her house was almost foreclosed on, and Joy’s family has moved from a house into an apartment. However, there are a lot of positives with this shift! Joy almost immediately begins to make friends, which keeps this book on an upbeat track, while still recognizing the struggles Joy sees in her parents fighting over money, and Joy and her sister, Malia, adjusting to a smaller space. Throughout, we see small sacrifices our characters have to make. I appreciated how real the parents feel--they struggle repeatedly and work on their communication and issues but persist in the name of their kids. I thought they were very well written without taking away from Joy’s story.

What a powerful middle-grade book, covering topics like lay-offs and downsizing, parental separation, and making new friends after a move. I enjoyed all the characters, including all of Joy's new neighbors!

A good book about real life that shows different ways to adjust to life's circumstances. I'm glad it showed the parents working out their problems and that sometimes they just need space too. The family works well and, hopefully, there really are apartment complexes like this one.

Another amazing book by this author! I love that, like Zoe’s story, this story about Joy and Nora is one I can hand to my 6th graders and they will love it. It has heart, family dynamics many kids can relate to, and a great message of redemption and friendship. There need to be more books like this for that upper-middle grade audience who are ready for a meatier story without violence, cursing and sexual situations. Well done. Can’t wait for my students to get to read it once it’s published.

Fans of Marks’ debut will love A Soft Place to Land. Young readers will relate to Joy’s struggles, fears, and aspirations. This book deftly explores how kids face the ever-changing circumstances around them. Highly recommend.

The cover is the first great thing about this story! I couldn't put this one down and highly recommend it!

Full of heart, with richly developed, relatable characters. Loved the storyline, and the satisfying conclusion.

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

Excellent story about friendship, dealing with grief and creating a safe space for kids. Acceptance is huge as is responsibility. Themes in this one sitting read include divorce, dealing with life's changes, and entrepreneurship.

An excellent book for all ages.

Great book about family, friends, changes, and forgiveness. When 12 year old Joy’s family moves to an apartment, she’s not happy. She has to share a room with her little sis, and the walls are thinner so she hears her parents arguing more. She starts to make friends and she learns there is a secret Hideout in the basement where her new friends can go to be alone or to hang out for movie night. Only they know about it. Joy and Nora start a dog walking business, and all goes well until something happens. Then Joy becomes upset with her parents and escapes to the Hideout. When her parents learn about the Hideout, it is closed down and her friends get mad. Joy has to come up with a solution to make everything right. In time, Joy finds it’s not about where you live but being together with people you love is what matters the most.