I think this is probably a great children's book, but I was reading for a committee in 2021 and had to choose which books to spend my time on. This was not for list but good for reader's advisory.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC digital copy. I have not been compensated for my opinion and this is an honest review.

Unfortunately, I was unable to finish reading this ARC digital copy before needing to switch to other books that were being archived. The book remains on my Goodreads "want to read" list, and I will update my review to reflect an updated opinion when I finish it at a later date..

Cora struggles with anxiety and is more likely a dual-diagnosis, which brings a lot of negative self-talk. Her best friend had moved away and the beginning of the school year is proving to be tough going. To control her thoughts and feelings, Cora compulsively counts minutes. This text brings to life the complexity of family dynamics, friendship, mental health, and coming of age.

First, thanks to NetGalley for the eArc in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Cora is having a rough start to her school year. Her best friend has moved, she given a "forced friend" to spend time with, and Brain is over the top in contributing to her life. Add to that, a mysterious man, who we find out is her uncle, who is having his own problems with mental health and addictions.

Trying to deal with anxiety, Cora resorts to counting., counting everything! Especially time. But thankfully, she is surrounded by a loving family who really does want the best for her, regardless of what she may think some times.

Overall, I really liked the way the author dealt with the mental health/non-neurotypical issues as they came up, including how she had friends and classmates relate to Cora. I also appreciated the fact that we see an intact family, struggling to do their best.

Will I encourage my middle grade students to seek it out? Probably. But will it get a huge push, probably not. In the scheme of things, it just wasn't very memorable.

A beachside treasure hunt. A mysterious family secret. And a friendless girl named Cora, who is ready to be happy again, she just doesn’t know it yet.
In A Thousand Minutes to Sunlight, Jen White doesn’t just gift us with a compelling, middle-grade adventure, but dares to peel back the layers and go deeper. We don’t just get a quirky tween heroine, we also catch a glimpse into what it’s like to live through that difficult age with anxiety. Cora’s brain works a bit differently than most kids her age. She finds comfort in counting the seconds, minutes, and hours of each day. There’s a surety in time that she struggles to find in her day to day life. And when the noise and the people around her are too much, she relies on the advice of Brain to help her through. Brain has been inside of Cora’s head for as long as she can remember, and tells her “the truth.” Only, now that her only friend Minny has moved away, and her parents are suddenly inviting long-lost uncles home and keeping secrets, Cora’s not so sure of anything anymore.

I devoured A Thousand Minutes of Sunlight in one sitting. I’ve always been drawn to off-beat stories and characters, and Cora and time-travel-bound Patrick quickly became people I wished I’d known in Middle School. Most tweens feel like strangers in their own skin, but Cora’s anxiety attacks and the stress brought on by her family’s secrets make her struggle seem insurmountable. The author did an amazing job, not only allowing us to see the world through Cora’s eyes (and with Brain’s commentary), but in crafting a story the reader will want to inhabit. I loved the emphasis on family and friendships, and the way Cora discovers that everyone in her life is made up of layers.

With a colorful cast of unforgettable characters, and a few surprising stakes to bring you to the edge of your seat, A Thousand Minutes of Sunlight is an absolute must-read. And if that isn’t enough to convince you, the mystery behind the treasure hunt and Patrick’s time machine should compel you to join in the journey. Cora finds strength alongside the reader, to accept the new friendships and mended family connections. As Cora reflects, “Now I understand Dad. It isn’t about the treasure. It’s about time. Time with people you care about.” Just like her father chooses to give her estranged uncle a second chance, so too Cora decides to give second chances to her friends and herself.

**I was provided with a copy of A Thousand Minutes of Sunlight by the publisher and this is my voluntary and honest review.**

To begin with, I thought the author did a lovely job with the story. She addresses mental health issues and how people cope with them.

Cora is a complex character. I appreciated how the author wrote her struggles against her mind when she gets panic attacks. I enjoyed the way the author portrayed Cora’s feelings. She has interesting conversations with her brain, where you can read her thoughts through actual dialogues between the brain and Cora. Interestingly, the author also managed to convey difficulties with adults, such as Uncle Richie’s addiction problems.

Moreover, it is never easy losing a best friend, and I thought the author portrayed Cora’s friendship with Patrick nicely to move on from Minny. Patrick and Cora share lovely company and some of their moments were very cute. Also, Patrick oozes optimism and positivity that you cannot help but adore. I enjoyed the scenes where he takes Cora on the ride and takes her to Bingo. On a side note, I also loved Queen Bea and thought she made the story extra special.

However, I would have loved more scenes and interactions between Cora and Uncle Richie. I felt that we didn’t get enough closure on the topic. Moreover, I would have liked it if the story spent less time on Cora’s hunt for Cat’s treasure and spent more time at her bonding with her Uncle. On the other hand, I enjoyed Patrick’s time travel storyline and wondered how it would progress.

Overall, “A Thousand Minutes to Sunlight” is a charming middle-grade novel that focuses on mental health issues with a touch of friendship and adventure.

This was such an inspiring story. Jen White did a great job in portraying mental health issues and how people and their environment handle this.

Cora is an interesting character to follow throughout the story. In the book, we get to see her struggle against her 'talking brain', which was very fascinating to discover. White made Cora into a complex character, which the reader can connect with and understand.

I love how Cora's friendship with Patrick eventually grows and how she begins to see things in another light. That she can actually make friends and maintain them. The adventures she goes on with Patrick, are lovely to read.

The story about uncle Richie was one I would've loved to read more about. I would've loved to know how the two of them bonded together later on. That was an aspect I missed in the story. The ending was rather rushed on that part.q
The writing style was easy to read, yet very fascinating.

I love how White talks to the reader at the end of the book and provides sources to go to if you're struggling.

I think A Thousand Minutes to Sunlight is a wonderful story about mental health, family and friendship;

Thank you to the author and Xpresso Book Tours for the free e-copy. This in no way affected my opinion.

12-year old Cora is a treasure-seeking middle school girl plagued by fierce anxiety. (It wasn't mentioned in the book, but she seemed to be on the autism spectrum, too.) Her best friend has just moved away at the same time her long-lost alcoholic uncle reemerges in her family's life. If that wasn't enough to exacerbate her anxiety, a boy at school wants to become her best friend and help her on her quest to find the fabled treasure of a missing woman. This is an important middle-grade book because of its inclusion of characters with mental health and addiction issues. While I appreciate the representation displayed in this book, I did get frustrated by Cora's constant conversations with Brain (negative self-talk). I think her anxiety and intrusive thoughts could have been portrayed in a more subtle and less annoying way. It really interfered with the flow of the story.

Thank you to Macmillan and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

My Thoughts:

I really enjoyed this novel, I know this because I didn't take too many notes. I was too busy reading! It was a wonderful story of friendship, family, and self-growth.

I really connected with Cora, because I understand her. I have pretty bad anxiety, and it's honestly only getting worse as I get older, because there are more things to worry about! But, I really connected with her after reading this passage (that I also shared on my Teaser Tuesday post previously):

A silent house, in the middle of the night, might be one of the loneliest places on the planet.

Did you hear that?

Brain says: Absolutely an ax murderer.

Crouched in the hallway, I'm poised for anything. It's 11:31 P.M. to be exact, and a wonder that I can even hear Brain, with my heart hammering in my eardrums.

Inside my head, I count.

1 2 3 4 5

This is pretty much how I react to weird noises at night, or even without any noise to prompt me at all. I just lie awake thinking someone is going to try and get into my house and hurt us. The only difference is I don't count. I use a variety of other coping mechanisms, but I don't think I have ever counted. Counting is Cora's big thing, that and her conversations with Brain.

I hate Brain, but that's what the author wants. Brain makes Cora question everything and makes her keep to herself. Brain tells her she is no good, that no one will ever want to be her friend, and that people are always thinking bad things about her. I love watching Cora grow and realize that maybe Brain isn't right all the time and maybe she should ignore Brain and just go with the flow. The first time she told Brain to "Hush" I actually cheered out loud a little. It was nice to slowly watch Brain fade into the background and Brain to actually question "What the heck is going on?" as Cora becomes more and more independent.

Patrick was my favourite character in the book. Everyone needs a Patrick in their life. He is so happy, energetic, and doesn't let anything, or anyone's opinions, get in the way of enjoying his life. He is a great friend and always there for you, supporting you however he can. I really enjoyed his storyline, and LOVED how they "resolved" it. I love how Cora and Patrick bond over their goals, just 2 kids with 2 impossible dreams.

The novel is simply written, and perfect for middle grade readers. The chapters are short and easy to get through, and I loved the intriguing and unique chapter titles. The subject of mental illness is addressed cautiously and with tact. I love that both parents are in the picture and are supportive. I love Cora's sister, Sunshine, and how supportive she is always trying to be, especially with the affirmations. She is such a little sweetheart! I love that therapy is used and medication is discussed. I also like how they worked in a possible family connection to show it's not just her and that mental illness runs in the family.

My only issue was I wish they would have left out the two incidents that "may" have caused the issues with her brain, because I would have preferred a character with mental illness with no causation as I feel it might have been easier for other kids to connect with her and what she is dealing with without the causation aspect.

Overall it's a fabulous book that is very well written for the target audience and I recommend it to everyone.

The Pros:
Mental health is addressed in a positive and helpful manner.
The characters are all very well done and realistic.
The importance of family and friendship is strong.
Patrick!!!

The Cons:
The idea of something possibly causing the mental health issues made me feel uncomfortable in this specific novel.

A Thousand Minutes to Sunlight was so thoughtfully written. I really appreciated how the author addressed mental health issues + anxiety coping mechanisms for teens and kids through the storyline. Many readers think that middle grade novels are not proper reading material for teens and older people, but we have so much to learn from MGs! If books like ATMTS would have been available (for me) to read 6-7 years back, I would have had a proper foundation to deal with anxiety. 🥺🧡

In ATMTS, we follow Cora as she struggles to adapt to sixth grade i.e middle school due to her panic attacks. Minny, her only friend in the whole world, moves to Florida too, which makes things even harder for her. Cora's character was so intricately layered. I loved reading about her. We also get to see Cora have different conversations with her brain, which I think was a very interesting touch to the story. Since the book deals with mental health as the main focus, that made the story very real to me.

Patrick was such a perfect addition to this story! I adored his friendship with Cora. Making new friends is never easy, specially at such a young age, so the friendship factor of the novel was definitely a ray of sunshine. ❤️

One of my favourite things about reading ATMTS was how Cora dealt with different family issues too. With the introduction of Uncle Richie and his addiction problems, Cora's world shifted a little, which the author managed to express perfectly. I think a lot of people will relate to her struggles to connect with her parents. We have all passed that phase, no?

I would have rated the book with 5 stars, but I wanted to see more moments between Uncle Richie and Cora. 🥺 But other than that, the book was admirable from the beginning to end. It comes out on a few hours, please don't forget to pick it up! You won't be disappointed, I promise.