And Then, Boom! is a must read for 10 to 13 year olds. I was hooked!

Joe is used to his mother leaving when she gets the “itch” and relying on his grandmother to care for him. So it’s no surprise he compares his life to a superhero, waiting for the next boom! to explode. But as the next storm brews, he must not only learn how to accept help from friends, but also how to trust the community who has his best interests at heart. Author Lisa Fipps’ And Then, Boom! is a must-read, novel in verse about
a boy’s struggle, determination, and resilience as he faces great odds, but continues to cling to hope.

Thank you Netgalley & Penguin Group for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

“Hunger isn’t just about food.” My heart ached for Joe as he dealt with blow after blow in this novel in verse, but he had people there to support him, even when he didn’t want to ask for help. There were so many powerful lines that struck me as I read that I wrote them down to digest later. This book is an important reminder of the load some kids have to bear and the importance of giving to others whenever you can.

A powerful novel in verse that follows the many “booms” of Joe, including poverty, loss, hunger; yet surrounds him with people who are there to give, to reach out, to support. Beautiful writing.

Joe Oak is a survivor. He survives an absent parent, the stigmas of poverty, food insecurity and the loss of a loved one. Sadly, I feel like these will be things my students will understand all too well. The author's heartbreaking, honest words will convey to the reader the desperation and despair many people around us endure sometimes without any of us being aware. They will see themselves and each other in Joe. Hopefully they will see his strength and courage and recognize that they too, like Joe, can overcome hardships.

Lisa Fipps' writing is cutting and honest, and she shows you things that are uncomfortable, but she doesn't let you look away..

This short middle grade book pulled me in by my heartstrings, and near the end had me crying actual tears. The theory is to put your main character in a tree and throw rocks and them, and gosh there were so many rocks thrown at Joe was hard to keep track of them all.

Joe’s mother has gotten in some trouble with the law, so her grandmother puts up the house as collateral for her bond. But the mother skips town, and the grandmother and Joe lose their home. They were already on the hairy edge before, but with no home, they end up living out of their car. Joe doesn’t want to let anyone know what is happening. He tries to behave at school as though everything is cool. But adults around him see through him, as do his best friends, and they reach out to him to try to help.

Hie best friend finds a trailer park that his grandmother can afford to rent. His teacher makes ure there are always snacks available for the kids, him in cluded, and also introduces him to a closet of “lost” clothes that he can choose from. (The band new sneakers fit him exactly, and still have the tags on them, so it is implied that perhaps they were purchased with him in mind.).

Through it all, there his human kindness, and Joe and his grandmother spiral ever downwards in poverty. Apparently food stamps (SNAP) doesn’t pay for toilet paper, or tooth paste, or anything like that, so Joe has to find and use whatever he can in public restrooms.

As I said, I was in tears near the end. Despite this book being written in blank verse. Despite it being written from Joe’s perspective, with minimal descriptions, unless they were necessary. I loved this book, and read it as quickly as I could to find out what would happen next.

Highly recommended. Good for kids of all backgrounds to read and see how the poor barley scrape by in the heartless country.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book will be published the 7th of May 2024.

I love that the author writes about tough topics. It is well done and presented in a way that captivates. Great story.

And Then, Boom! is simply amazing!
A middle grade novel in verse that addresses the complex issues of food scarcity that so many students struggle with, blended with the dynamics of friendship & a dash of superheroes. So many powerful messages and connections for readers of all ages.

This book deserves ten stars! The hope that Joseph feels after enduring so many booms! With the support of friends, Joseph feels he has a chance again after his mom leaves again, his grandmum is gone, and a tornado leaves him homeless. Loved the teacher who was so supportive in many ways.

I absolutely loved this authors, first book, Starfish, and was anxious to read her latest one. Once again, she nailed it and while I didn’t like this one quite as much as I liked Starfish, I would still highly recommend it. The story revolves around an impoverished 11 year old boy, Joe Oak, who lives with his beloved grandmother and his on again, off again mother. In his short 11 years, Joe has faced more than any child should have to face - constant, hunger, displacement, abandonment, and homelessness. While he does his best to hide his problems from his friends, teacher, and other adults in his life, his problems eventually catch up to him, and he discovers that it’s ok to ask for help.
I love that this book is written in verse. It makes it that much more appealing to middle graders and this is a story with an important message that should be read by all of them. I can’t wait to add this to my school library collection!
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the e-ARC of this novel in verse.

When I love an author's debut book, I always have mixed feelings starting their second book. I so desperately want to love it as much as the first, but I know that a lot of times, it isn't as good as the first. In this case however, AND THEN, BOOM! did not disappoint. It is as emotional and heart breaking as STARFISH, but in an entirely different way. I was all in from the first page, and I fell in love with Joe. His friends, Nick and Hakeem, are absolutely everything a kid could want in friends, and they are a lifeline for Joe in the truest sense of the word. This book lives up to every bit of hype I held in my head and I can't wait for the rest of the world to meet Joe Oak and this amazing cast of characters.

I read Lisa Fipps's Starfish, and was excited to read this one also. I'm not quite sure how this book made me feel, anger at the failing mom who "just wasn't meant to be a parent", annoyance at the rich friend who has whatever he wants and can't comprehend what the main character is going through, sadness for the main character and his best friend/neighbor who also has struggling parents. The tornado portion was a little unbelievable, but I'll go with creative license, and I'm glad the dogs were saved. I'm happy for the ending, but also there's no resolution really. I appreciate the hope, and I'm sure there are kids who are experiencing these same journeys, but I want an epilogue 10 years down the road. A quick read for middle grade and an excellent use of verse storytelling.

Just another amazing book by Lisa Fipps, full of emotion and situations to pull the empathy right out of you. Starfish will always have a special place in my heart, but it was more difficult to sell it to my students who cannot look beyond their own societal judginess about fat people. This book has the same amount of heart and harrowing situations with a more universally-relatable main character. I saw Fipps speak at a conference where she used the "..and then, boom!" phrase to frame some of her own life events. It really applies in this book where I could already feel how desperate things were, but then they got even worse. Beautifully written with a gripping story.

I read and loved this author's previous book Starfish and couldn't wait to read this book too. This novel brought out all the emotions in me, as if I were living my life right along side of these characters. Joe is a lovable character and I found myself rooting for him immediately. My heart broke every time Joe faced a setback; my heart soared when others around Joe reached out and provided assistance in ways Joe needed at the time--from shelter and food, to listening and providing love that Joe's mom never gave. This book is hopeful for the future. It shows readers that we never really know what others are going through or dealing with and that every one deserves empathy and love.

“Then make me choose and watch what happens.”
Oh, my heart.
And Then, Boom! is a story about a middle grade boy who is forced to grow up too quickly. 11-year-old Joe’s world turns upside down when his mom is arrested and skips out on bail, leaving Joe and his Grandmum without a place to live. Joe and his Grandmum then embark on a journey plagued with food insecurity, displacement, and abandonment that many face. There were many scenes in this book that broke my heart, and served as a reminder that most people are one paycheck away from experiencing homelessness firsthand. What really shone through in this book, for me, was the “small” gestures from others that meant EVERYTHING to Joe. The kindness of others can be such a lifechanging impact. What may feel like not enough can be the difference between having something to eat/wear for another day. It doesn’t have to be a grand expensive gift or an organized event, it can just be a casserole. You never know exactly what people are going through but, if you’re paying attention, you can see when others are struggling. This book is rich with discussion opportunities and I will be using it for my middle grade book club when it comes out.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

For middle-schooler Joe Oak, just when he thinks his bumpy day/week/month might finally level out--Then, Boom!-- another obstacle arises and he's struggling again. An unreliable and absent mother means Joe is often on his own. But he's heard stories about bad foster homes, and will do whatever it takes to avoid Child Protective Services. One day, after Joe's mother up and disappears, his grandmum steps into the void. The two struggle with food and housing insecurity and unpaid bills, but Joe's friends, an older neighbor, and an observant teacher offer quiet assistance. Then, Boom!...a tragedy occurs, and Joe decides to try the unthinkable: make it on his own. Yet with two puppies and their mother at his side, his struggles eventually become a life or death situation, especially when a tornado takes aim. In the end, Joe must go against all his instincts and learn to open up, to allow others in--people who might be able to offer him the stable, loving home he's always wanted and every child deserves. This novel in verse from Lisa Fipps features a remarkable main character that will open tweens' eyes, minds, and hearts to those around them for whom getting through each day might be a challenge.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for a preview of the book in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

You’re going to be cheering for Joe, the everyday superhero we’ve been waiting for. Joe is a sweet kid who’s been dealt a rough hand and it just keeps getting worse. So many kids are going to relate to Joe. And hopefully others gain empathy for their classmates who might be having similar experiences.

This is an amazing book, I read it in one sitting, and all I could do was root for this courageous kid who behaves like an adult and is clear-headed enough to appreciate the help and kindness he is given and the mess he is in.

Joe Oak lives with his English grandmother, on just one paycheck and food stamps, and knows what hunger is—hunger for food, certainty, and a different reality. Love holds him and his grandmother together, but it will not be enough, and when everything crashes around him with a big BOOM! Joe will rely on his friends and the kindness of strangers to survive until there is nothing else to fall back on.

There are such appropriate comparisons in the book for the helplessness Joe experiences. Written in verse by Lisa Flips (award-winning author of Starfish), the book is the most heartfelt account I've had the opportunity to read about what it means to go to sleep hungry, a thing that happens more and more in America. As Joe says, perhaps if we all did something about it, there wouldn't be hungry kids in our schools and communities.
Lisa writes from experience and has this to say about hope: When bad things happen that leave your mind, heart, and soul shattered, you learn from and then discard the dreadful pieces, and then you can puzzle the good back together just the way you want them to create the life you’ve always dreamed of. Broken things and people are beautiful".