Enjoy The Memory Keeper Drafted By Jennifer Camiccia Contained In Copy

can remember everything that's ever happened to her, Her memory is perfect. Unfortunately, her grandmother is beginning to forget things, Lulu is covering for her because Gram is the one person Lulu knows she can rely on and she doesn't want her parents to put Gram into a nursing home.
In covering for her Gram, Lulu uncovers a secret, Her Gram is from Russia, not France, which is the story her dad and she had been told, Why had Gram lied about this Lulu's friends believe Gram might be a spy, Lulu isn't worried about Gram being a spy, she wants to find the bad memory that might help Gram get better if she just faces it.
This is a wonderful story of love, family, friendship, and being there for people when they need it the most, This book is geared toward an older person, I dont understand why its in the elementary school category, I do like the details regarding how the brain works, I liked the suspense too, But, the book is too deep for kids, In my opinion. There are many books about tweens dealing with a grandparent's memory loss or the beginnings of Alzheimer's/Dementia, This one is set apart in two ways, First, Lulu herself has an issue with her memory, though it is quite the opposite, She has Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory HSAM which means she can remember every minute of every day of her life with complete accuracy.
Second, her grandmother has some deep mystery from her past that is beginning to surface as her memory declines, With the help of her two good friends, Lulu hopes to figure out her grandmother's past in order to save her grandmother's future.
Recommended for gradesamp up, This touching story of a girl's quest to learn the truth of her grandmother's mysterious origins will be beloved by middle grade readers, and is particularly good for STEM tieins.
Lula has HSAM, or Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory, which means she can remember every day of her life in striking detail.
Meanwhile, her grandmother appears to be losing her own memory, perhaps because she is suppressing an early trauma, Lulu's spunkiness and grit shine in this engaging debut novel, as she navigates boy and girl friendships, family secrets, and her family's buried grief over the death of a sibling.
Each chapter begins with interesting facts on a facet of the human brain tied to a particular challenge Lulu is dealing with.
Imaginative, heartfelt, and highly recommended, Note: I read an Advance Readers Copy provided by the publisher, Lulu just wants her parents to notice her but she doesn't want her parents to notice that her Gram is forgetting things like where she parked the van.
Lulu has Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory HSAM and the only person who knows is Gram, Each chapter is named for a function of the brain with a little bit on what it does, and I thought that was a cool way to educate the reader on the many wonderful attributes of our brain! Lulu is trying to find out how she can keep her Gram at home while learning who this mysterious Yakov/Jacob is and what is his connection to her Gram is exactly.


Towards the end, Lulu finds out her parents do still love her, and that their struggle with losing Lulu's baby sister, Maisie doesn't affect their love for her.
Her Mom does make an effort towards Lulu and tells her how important she is to her, She even admitted that she was feeling blue, and it seemed to validate how Lulu was feeling when she lost her sister too.
I was endeared to the themes of family, strong friendship, courage, and learning that her HSAM doesn't make her less lovable.
Note: This review is spoilerfree

I loved the family dynamics in this story, Lulus family wasnt perfect but they were real, Her father was a professor who worked a lot her mother was an artist who spent days cooped up in her home studio.
While Lulu grew distant from her mom and dad in recent years, she was closest to her Gram, who looked after both her and her baby brother.
When Gram began to lose her memory, Lulu thought that there could be one traumatic memory in her past that was responsible for her Grams forgetfulness.
She embarked on a hunt for her Gram's past with her two friends, Olivia and Max,

I loved Lulu who was intelligent, resourceful and brave, She and her friends certainly formed an unstoppable trio when it came to solving mysteries, I loved reading about Lulu and Olivias friendship which had their ups and downs, and it was fun to read about Lulu and Max who became good friends over the course of the story.
Gram was the highlight of the story, Not only was she the caregiver for Lulu and her brother, she also had a childhood of her own, and a life that was filled with joy and sadness.


Throughout the story, I was swept along with Lulu, Olivia and Maxs adventure to find out Grams past, I had an inkling of suspicion where things would end up at the end, but it didnt stop me from wanting to turn the pages because I was invested with the amazing cast of characters.


Although dementia is a heavy topic, I appreciate that this story approached it with an upbeat and playful vibe while handling it with sensitivity.
I loved the ending of the story, which felt so heartfelt and real,

The Memory Keeper was a story that made me laugh and cry, Lulu and her family would stay in my mind long after Ive turned the last page, Whether you are a middle grader, a teen, or an adult like me! I would definitely recommend this book! The Memory Keeper is an engaging middlegrade debut from Jennifer Camiccia.
This novel features a character with Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory, a grandparent dealing with the onset of Alzheimers, and a parent recovering from depression.
Yet, it manages not to be a downer, With an impressively woven mystery and a trio of adventurous, smart kids, this book is a thrilling read,

Id highly recommend this novel to anyone who loves science, mysteries, and stories about strong bonds between grandparents and their grandchildren.
Its perfect for fans of Tae Kellers sitelinkThe Science of Breakable Things and Meg Medina's sitelinkMerci Suárez Changes Gears.


Read sitelinkmy full review on my blog, I learned so much about

the brain in this book! Don't let that make you feel like this is a text book.
Not at all. But I loved how each chapter started with the name of a part of the brain and how it works, This tidbit then tied in to the chapter and what was going on with Gram, Lulu, her friends, and family, The Memory Keeper is a great book to read, full of mystery, intrigue, secrets, Alzheimer's, and special brains, Oh so many more wonderful details, but you will have to read it to discover them, Lulu is on a quest to find the traumatic event that is impacting her Gram's memory so she can help her.
Check out The Memory Keeper and read this touching and wellwritten story, Superb book that was so well written and taught me so many things about the brain, Lulu Carter loves her Grandma more than anything, because her Grandma is the only one who understands her, She had a HSAM memory, which means she remembers everything photographic memory times, However, when her Grandma starts forgetting things, Lulu tries to discover more about her past so she can cure her, Throughout all kinds of plot twists, Lulu learns that somethings cant be cured, and her Grandmas life was more than she had ever though it to be.
The story was full of plot twists that I hadnt expected, and definitely deserves to win the Caudill award next year.
Im not sure if the author has since written more books, but if she has Ill be reading them, This was amazing! Such a great summer mystery type read, with family amp friendship at its core, Each chapterbesides chapterwhich is titled the type of memory our MC has, chapterthat is just titled “The Brain”, amp the last chapter which is “Lulus Journalis titled a part from our brain.
Then thest paragraph of that chapter explain what that part does, amp usually our MC explains how it relates to memories.
I learned so much about the brain alone reading this! I LOVED that, A diagram of the brain is even at the beginning of the book! Theres apparently SO much I dont know, amp that just makes me eager to learn more.
Theres history to this story as well, with what our MC Lulu uncovers about her Grandmas past, Everything about the mystery of her past, amp the journal, etc, was so intriguing amp just fascinating to me, Hooked me. Plus the history of the world the Grandma was living in during that time, amp what her country,but especially what she, went through.
So many important themes amp relatable issues in here, Such as not fitting in, feeling “different” in some way like an outsider, family secrets, child lossamp what it can then do to a family, divorce, feeling invisible, how important some grandparents become in some kids lives, amp Alzheimers.
Theres just so much GOOD in here, Engaging writing, thought provoking, amazing pace, amp incredible characters, I love the friendship between Lulu amp Olivia, Especially how much closer this mystery brings them, amp helps Lulu realize that she can really count on Olivia, That she wont think shes “too weird” because of her memory, amp stop being her friend like she thought before, Also, Olivia shows her that just because someone is always smiling acting like everything is greatthat isnt always the case, amp we should always check to make sure our friends are ok no matter the outside appearance.
Then the friendship that forms between Lulu, Max, amp Olivia as they team up to solve the mystery, Again, Lulu learns that appearances dont always mean what they appear, Maxs smirk, for example, wasnt what she thought at all, She misjudged him over amp over, amp he ended up becoming a great friend, The core feeling of this story is family, Wanting to be seen amp loved by family, wanting to protect the family that DOES see you amp love you, amp feeling powerless sometimes as well.
Life basically. Such an amazing read. HIGHLY recommend. STUNNING cover by Aveline Stokart too, I loved this poignant, emotional mg debut, The front matter bits about the brain worked perfectly with the story and the mystery unfolded in a meaningful way, Rich characters, wonderful lessons, and spectacular prose a win!,