Downing Hahn, Mary. Where I Belong. New York: Clarion Books, 2014.

My young readers are drawn to Mary Downing Hahn books. They are drawn to the ghost stories that she creates so beautifully. I ordered this book on the strength of her reputation among my students. As I finally got a chance to read this in preparation for a book talk, I was surprised by its difference and fell in love with it nearly immediately.

Where I Belong is the story of 12 year old Brendan, a product of the foster system who desperately wishes to belong. He lives now with Mrs. Clancy, who certainly does not treat him badly as have many of his earlier fosters, but does not seem to understand him at all. She doesn’t understand why he refuses to cut his long hair. She persists in feeding him protein even though he hates meat. She finds his passion for drawing a waste of time and wishes he would just pass his classes and move on to middle school. Early in the book he finds a peaceful place in the woods, a beautiful tree where he builds a treehouse and maybe just maybe finds a home. Throughout the course of the book, he meets the Green Man whom he wants to believe is the protector of his woods. He is bullied, tortured mercilessly, by Sean, Gene, and TJ, a gang of teenage thugs. He meets Shae in summer school and perhaps discovers someone who is searching just as he is and Mr. Hailey who is able to teach him in a way that makes sense.

Hahn writes lyrically of Brendan’s life providing remarkable insight into his mind. After he completes his tree house, Hahn writes, “When everything is done except the roof, I prick my finger and press my blood into the tree’s bark. Its sap blends with my blood and makes us one. I lean against the trunk and close my eyes. Peace and silence surround me. At last I’ve found the place where I belong.” We come to know this passionate reader who is a struggling student, this lonely boy who genuinely believes no one can love him, this artist, and we come to love him. She teaches her readers that people simply can’t be judged on the basis of their appearance - long haired boys, homeless men, impatient foster moms. We learn through the course of the novel that we must all just dig a bit deeper and work to understand the people in our world.

I look forward to book talking this title to 8th graders this week. I love the idea of our kids reading Brendan’s story. I am thinking of entitling the entire talk “Kids I Love.” The whole time I was reading this I kept remembering the tree and the young boy from A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. I will pair it with this title. I am thinking of also including Rootless by Chris Howard because it describes a world where there are no more trees. I found in my catalog a nonfiction book called Wacky Trees that I’ve thought of including here.