So B. It

Amazon.com
One day in her apartment in Reno, Bernadette heard a pitiful sound in the hallway. She opened the door a crack and saw a young woman standing there in her raincoat, her bare legs spattered with dried mud, holding a crying baby wrapped in a blanket. The baby was Heidi, and they had come from the almost-empty apartment next door for help. Heidi's Mama can't tend her week-old child because she has, as Heidi later says, "a bum brain," so Bernadette steps in and cares for them both tenderly. Mama says her name is "So Be It," but with her twenty-three-word vocabulary, this is all the information she can give Bernadette.

Twelve years later this strange but loving household is still together. Heidi does the shopping because Bernadette has "angora phobia," and pays for it with money she wins at the laundromat; Bernadette teaches her at the kitchen table while Mama is happily occupied with her coloring books, and the rent and utilities are always mysteriously paid. But Heidi wonders who she is, where she and Mama came from, why they were alone, and most of all, she wants to know the meaning of Mama's word "soof." When she finds some old photos in a cupboard, she knows where to go to find out, and as she sets out on a long cross-country bus journey, the pieces of the puzzle begin to fall into surprising places in this intriguing and heartwarming mystery. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell


From School Library Journal
Grade 6-9–Heidi and her mother have lived in an apartment that adjoins with their neighbor, Bernadette, since the 12-year-old was probably no more than a week old. Bernadette accepted and loved them from the moment they arrived at her door but could never ask questions since Heidi's mentally challenged mother simply "didn't have the words to answer them." Bernadette's agoraphobia further isolates the child. Heidi struggles with knowing nothing about her father or her family history, and never having a real last name. Then she finds an old camera, which prompts her quest to learn the identity of the people in the photographs it holds and to discover her past. While traveling by bus from Nevada to Liberty, NY, the girl relies on her luck, instinct, and the people she meets on the way to learn the truth about her mother and her own background. Readers will pull for and empathize with the likable characters, especially Heidi as she struggles for self-knowledge. The almost melodramatic story has fantasy elements such as Heidi's lucky streak; hitting a slot machine enables her to buy the bus ticket to New York. Heidi's naive voice, however, creates a willing suspension of disbelief as she learns what she set out to and matures along the way.–Maria B. Salvadore, formerly at District of Columbia Public Library Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


From Booklist
*Starred Review* Gr. 4-7. Thirteen-year-old Heidi lives a sheltered but rich life in Reno with her developmentally disabled mother, So B. It, and their agoraphobic neighbor, Bernadette, who takes care of them. The pair arrived on Bernie's doorstep 13 years ago, and because So B. It's vocabulary consists of only 23 words, Bernie has never been able to figure out where she and her mother came from or if they have any other family. Bernie homeschools Heidi, who is intelligent, determined, and energetic. One day while cleaning a closet, Heidi discovers an old camera with film inside. When the photos are developed, they find a young, pregnant So B. It at Hilltop Home for the Disabled, in Liberty, New York. Determined to solve the mystery of her mother, Heidi sets out alone on a cross-country bus trip. There are obvious resemblances to Sharon Creech's Walk Two Moons (1994), but Weeks has a distinctive voice that's all her own. Her fully dimensional characters are remarkable yet believable, and although readers may guess the truth about Heidi's family before she does, the foreshadowing builds to a beautifully satisfying ending. An especially nice device is the chapter titles: each is one of So B. It's 23 words. This is lovely writing--real, touching, and pared cleanly down to the essentials. Debbie Carton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


School Library Journal
"Readers will pull for and empathize with the likable characters."


Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"A quick and satisfying tale of love, determination, and the kindness of strangers."


Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) (starred review)
"Refreshing, offbeat characters. As the riddle of Heidi’s life slowly unfolds, readers will be genuinely touched and surprised."


New York Times Book Review
"A remarkable novel. [Heidi’s] cross-country journey is brave and daring and yields surprising results."


Kirkus Reviews
"The heart of the search for home and history is one that readers will find compelling."


Book Description

You couldn't really tell about Mama's brain just from looking at her, but it was obvious as soon as she spoke. She had a high voice, like a little girl's, and she only knew twenty-three words. I know this for a fact, because we kept a list of the things Mama said tacked to the inside of the kitchen cabinet. Most of the words were common ones, like good and more and hot, but there was one word only my mother said, soof.

Although she lives an unconventional lifestyle with her mentally disabled mother and their doting neighbor, Bernadette, Heidi has a lucky streak that has a way of pointing her in the right direction. When a mysterious word in her mother's vocabulary begins to haunt her, Heidi's thirst for the truth leads her on a cross-country journey in search of the secrets of her past.

ANNOTATION

From the bestselling author of "Regular Guy" comes a novel about a young girl living in Reno with her mentally disabled mother who, haunted by a mysterious word in her mother's 23-word vocabulary, embarks on a cross-country journey.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

After spending her life with her mentally retarded mother and agoraphobic neighbor, twelve-year-old Heidi sets out from Reno, Nevada, to New York to find out who she is.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Heidi It has gotten to be 12 years old without knowing any but the sketchiest information about her background: her mentally disabled mother, who insists her name is So Be It, showed up with the week-old Heidi on their neighbor Bernadette's doorstep seemingly out of the clear blue sky, and Bernadette, who is severely agoraphobic but also bookish and generous, has been looking out for Heidi and Mama ever since. Somehow Heidi and Mama never get billed for rent or utilities, and besides, Heidi has an almost magical ability to play slot machines, which, in their native Reno, can be found even in the local Sudsy Duds laundromat. But as the novel opens, Heidi has begun to chafe-she is no longer willing to live with Bernadette's complacency about the mysterious past ("What happened before [I met you] doesn't matter," Bernadette tells Heidi. "It's just something to be grateful for") and Heidi is determined to find out what Mama means by the strange word "soof." When Heidi uncovers an old camera with a roll of undeveloped film, a host of clues to her identity send her on a solo cross-country bus trip to confront people who not only do not expect her but have taken pains to insulate themselves from her existence. Suspension of belief is beside the point: readers will probably respond to Heidi's voice and determination, get caught up in the mystery and feel wiser for the mild tear-jerker ending. Ages 10-up. (May) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature - Kathryn Erskine

Weeks presents a quirky story with a compelling voice and intriguing characters. Twelve-year-old Heidi and her retarded mother are cared for by their neighbor in the next apartment, Bernadette. Bernie, who has not gone outside since her father died many years before, needs them as much as they need her. But when Heidi gets some old film developed and sees the photos of her mother at "Hilltop Home" in New York, she is determined to discover the mystery of her existence and translate the mysterious expression in her mother's 23-word vocabulary, "soof." After a classic adolescent breaking and reconciliation with Bernie, Heidi strikes out on her own from Reno to New York by bus. Armed with two sandwiches, two Devil Dogs and her amazing good luck—she can win the slots, any lottery, or "guess how many in the jar" contest—she makes it to Hilltop and is stunned at what she finds about her family. At a deeper level, she discovers that "whether you know something or not doesn't change what was" and that perhaps you should be grateful for what, and who, you have. Part of the delight in this book is meeting the characters Heidi discovers on her quest, not to mention Heidi and Bernie themselves. Reminiscent of Kate DiCamillo's Because of Winn-Dixie, it is an enjoyable and thought provoking read. 2004, Laura Geringer Books/HarperCollins, Ages 8 to 12.

KLIATT - Claire Rosser

Heidi has had a most unusual childhood. She lives with her mother, who is severely mentally handicapped, in Reno, Nevada. Next door in the apartment house is a loving woman, Bernadette, who takes care of them but suffers from agoraphobia and cannot leave the apartment. Many years ago, Bernadette found the infant Heidi and her bewildered young mother on her doorstep, neither one able to explain who they are. For years, the three of them have managed, using Bernadette's coping skills and Heidi's growing independence and capability. (All the practical details of how this odd trio copes with everyday life are explained throughout the story, and it's quite fascinating.) Heidi finds an old camera with film in it hidden away in a drawer, and she gets the photographs developed: they reveal a Christmas party, with the name of a place, and Heidi's young mother in one of the pictures—all clues to the identities of Heidi and her mother, who calls herself So B. It. Heidi becomes obsessed with these clues and Bernadette does what she can by telephone to get to the truth. But the people at the other end of the phone don't cooperate. Heidi decides that the only way she can find out the truth is to travel by herself by bus across the country to Hilltop Home, in the town of Liberty, New York. Bernadette can't really stop her, so she supports her and monitors Heidi's progress through telephone calls. Once Heidi gets to Liberty and meets the man who was Santa in one of the lost photos, nothing is easy, because this man doesn't want to help her in any way. Fortunately, through the kindness of the receptionist at the home and the local policeman, Heidi is cared for, and finally the truth about her parentsand grandparents is revealed. This belongs with other stories of unusual journeys, literal and figurative ones. Since Heidi is so young (12 years old), and her journey is ultimately one of revelation about her family, I think it can be compared to Sharon Creech's Walk Two Moons. KLIATT Codes: J—Recommended for junior high school students. 2004, HarperCollins, 246p., Ages 12 to 15.

School Library Journal

Gr 6-9-Heidi and her mother have lived in an apartment that adjoins with their neighbor, Bernadette, since the 12-year-old was probably no more than a week old. Bernadette accepted and loved them from the moment they arrived at her door but could never ask questions since Heidi's mentally challenged mother simply "didn't have the words to answer them." Bernadette's agoraphobia further isolates the child. Heidi struggles with knowing nothing about her father or her family history, and never having a real last name. Then she finds an old camera, which prompts her quest to learn the identity of the people in the photographs it holds and to discover her past. While traveling by bus from Nevada to Liberty, NY, the girl relies on her luck, instinct, and the people she meets on the way to learn the truth about her mother and her own background. Readers will pull for and empathize with the likable characters, especially Heidi as she struggles for self-knowledge. The almost melodramatic story has fantasy elements such as Heidi's lucky streak; hitting a slot machine enables her to buy the bus ticket to New York. Heidi's naive voice, however, creates a willing suspension of disbelief as she learns what she set out to and matures along the way.-Maria B. Salvadore, formerly at District of Columbia Public Library Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews