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

Madalyn is forced to live with her great uncle so she can attend a school. Her best friend has moved away, her dad's new job is on the east coast, and her mother's job keeps her busy at all hours. Madalyn isn't happy, but she makes the best of the situation and learns that no matter what life throws at her, she can thrive.

I liked the chapter headings and how they reflected Madalyn's internal journey as well as her mood on the outside. It shows the difficulties she faced as one of the only black girls in her school as well as the sacrifices all families have to make for each other.

This is a very relatable book for kids in 4th, 5th, and 6th grades. Not fitting in, feeling ignored, and working to find a place in the world. Highly recommended for all school and public libraries serving tween readers.

Thank you Netgalley and Katherine Tegen Books for the gifted book that I read in partnership with the library audio!

I think this book is a beautiful way to handle a girl dealing with so much happening in her life. She is living with her great uncle due to some logistical issues with her school and her parent's jobs. She is the only black girl at her new school learning to deal with microaggressions from her classmates and a new friend that is very prejudiced against black men/boys. And then on top of all that she is in California dealing with wildfires! This book has less plot and more character development than is normally my preference, but I think it beautifully handled some tough situations for the main character.

Maddie doesn't want to live with her great-uncle Papa Lobo. That means a new city, new school, and more new problems. The school she attends has very few brown faces and she has to adapt to that. I really enjoyed the other characters in the book which made the story more entertaining and interesting. I recommend this book to middle graders. I give this book five stars.

Madalyn has had a pretty stressful year. Her dad has been out of work and middle school was awful. Now that her dad has a temporary job across the country and mom is trying to work extra hours they decide Madalyn should go live with her great uncle, Papa Lobo and go to school there. Madalyn struggles to adjust and make friends. There is one girl she likes but sometimes Natalie says things that come across as racist and Madalyn isn't sure the friendship is worth the effort. When nearby forest fires force the 2 girls to help each other and their neighbors they have a chance to talk and find a way through their differences.

This was a solid, middle grade book. I felt like the last 1/4 of the book was really good but not sure if most of my readers would hang on that long through what was otherwise a pretty standard book - not bad, just not extremely engaging.

I featured this book as a Book of the Day spotlight and included it in my weekly roundup and monthly post of new releases on my Black Fiction Addiction platforms.

This was such a great middle-grade read! The main character goes to live with her great uncle. We see first hand what it's like to readjust to a new school and a new place. We also see what it's like to deal with microaggressions, fight for friendships through tough conversations, and be a good neighbor even when your neighbor seemingly hates you all wrapped up in the effects of global warming. Brilliant!

Partly Cloudy is an insightful middle grade story about family, community, and handling microaggressions in middle school. Author Tanita S. Davis presents the somewhat controversial idea that not all racist behavior is necessarily out of "evil" intent. Regardless, such microaggressions are worth addressing and learning about the backgrounds of others can build a measure of empathy. This slice-of-life novel is perfect for those who enjoy reading about the day-to-day of a character. It also features a lovable community and Creole words interspersed throughout. I liked this story and would definitely recommend it.

This book was such a tough one to rate.

So the book starts off with Madlyn being told by her parents that they will be having her live with her great uncle Papa Lobo this school year. Madlyn had a tough time the past school year after she and her parents had to move to a new town when her father lost his job. None of them think going back to the same middle school is best for her. Papa Lobo lives in a much better school district but in order to attend, she must live with him during the week.

Madlyn has to adjust to a new house, new school, and her father's new job which means he'll be away for weeks at a time. In addition her mother will only be seeing her on the weekends. At this new school Madlyn quickly notices she's the only Black girl and one of very few brown faces. Despite reluctance she seems to be making new friends easily. Until she finds out that one of her new friends isn't comfortable around Black boys and displays some micro-aggressive behavior towards her neighbor.

I loved the Creole heritage heavily displayed here and how loving Madlyn's family was. I thought this book did a really good job showing the types of tough sacrifices that need to be made sometimes so they kids can have a better life.

Where the book was a struggle for me was the handling of racism. Up until about 70% the book danced around even dubbing Madlyn's new friend's behavior as racist. And while I appreciated that it made a point that Black people should not have to educate white people it did show Black people having to be the better person in two situations with white characters displaying racist behaviors. I wasn't too keen about that. Plus the important confrontation about said racist behavior happened very late in the book when there was a crisis going on.

Also I found Madlyn came across younger than she is. She's in junior high which places her around age 12/13 but I was getting age 9/10 from this story. Plus she's at an age where open communicate should've been stressed beyond listening and learning.

It's a very teachable read that could definitely open up some conversation about the best way to deal with micro and macro aggressive behavior.

I received an arc from HarperCollins Children in exchange for an honest review.

What an amazing book! So lucky to have read it! Would recommend to any student. This book tackles many big topics for children, but I think it is some that many students can relate to. I think my students will be itching to read Partly Cloudy by Tanita S. Davis this school year!

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

This book tackles big issues that many kids can relate to - moving to a new school, looking and feeling different than your peers, anxiety and moodiness, climate change, racial micro (and macro) aggressions. Due to family circumstances, Madalyn must move to a new town with her great-uncle and attend a new school where she is the only Black girl in her class. She navigates new friendships, new family dynamics, and scary situations involving wildfires with the real emotional ups and downs of a middle schooler. I love how this book honors a full spectrum of feelings (happy, mad, sad, disappointed, joyful) and actions/reactions (ignore, help, hurt, support) that kids and adults go through as they interact with classmates, neighbors, and family. Recommended for fans of realistic fiction focused on the nuances of daily life.

This really strikes me as a very middle grade book, much more so than a lot of other books that I could categorize as middle grade/YA. With that in mind, tried to view this book from a middle schooler's perspective . I think that students in grades 4-7 would be the target audience.

Madelyn is a seventh grader living in California. She moves in with her great uncle Papa Lobo due to a change in family circumstances and a better school opportunity. While both her parents are okay and loving and Papa Lobo is kind, Madelyn misses part of her old life.

In addition to adjusting to living with Papa Lobo, Madelyn has to navigate a new school as The New Girl and one of the few Black students in the school-- she is the only Black female student in her class. As she slowly gets to know her peers, she encounters microaggressions and racism from someone who she thought was her friend. The beginning of the story and Madelyn's characterization seemed a little stilted to me; there was a lot of telling instead of showing. However, this book grew on me as I got further into the story. I liked how the conversation about race/standing up to your friends was embedded into the story and I also appreciate the realistic portrayal of the wildfire plot point-- a real issue for many people living on the west coast and especially relevant right now.

A nice early middle grade realistic fiction choice. The characters are portrayed well, and narrator Madalyn is easy to connect with emotionally. The issues of climate change/forest fires and a changing familial situation tie nicely into the plotline about racism and microaggressions, which comes across with particular nuance. While the weather metaphors get a little overextended, this is a quiet book that will draw readers in and make them think.

Interesting elements at play here. The kid living with an older relative, trying to reconcile two different ideas and approaches to life. The new kid in town - trying to fit in with new classmates in a school where you're the racial minority. We have some racism as an element but primarily tied to trauma. There are some interesting conversations within the book about race and bullying but it lacks nuance.

3.5 stars

Though you may not know it by looking at her face on the cover, young Madalyn has a pretty fun time throughout most of this novel. She has a bit of an upheaval when she goes to live (during the school week) with her great uncle, Lobo, who is an awesome character. He's kind of every kid's dream: hilarious and constantly pushing ice cream and hot chocolate! It's tough to be away from her mom and dad during this time, but Madalyn seems to acclimate pretty well to the new environment.

The same can be said for her experience at school; it goes relatively well. Though Madalyn meets some wonderful friends, the one who initially shows the most potential also reveals her racist thoughts and behaviors. While this obviously puts a huge crimp in their relationship, this aspect of the novel is realistically portrayed: not particularly developed but present nonetheless.

Davis's depiction of varied family structures, economic uncertainty, and microaggressions between kids all work well throughout the novel, but I do wish there had been some more unity between what feel like two separate chunks of the book: before the big wrench in people's plans (keeping this vague to avoid spoilers) and after. The introduction of this big event felt oddly placed to me, and as a lifelong Californian who has experienced some of what is described here more than once, I also wonder how relatable and compelling this particular situation is for most readers.

There is a lot to like about this novel, but I'd have loved to see some more consistent follow through with the plotting and development. Lobo also needs a whole series of his own. I'll be looking forward to more from Davis.

I loved this middle grade story!! It gripped me from the very first chapter and was unpredictable and exciting to read. Madalyn has to navigate so many challenging things (living apart from her parents, moving, making friends, having tough conversations with friends about race, and natural disasters). All of these challenges were realistic, and reading about Madalyn's story will help readers of all kinds feel either understood or more understanding (or both). I can't wait to use Partly Cloudy in my classroom.

Thank you to the publisher of the e-ARC of this middle grade novel. Partly Cloudy is a great story about a girl who has to live with her great uncle to attend a better school. Along the way, she meets new friends, but struggles to decide how best to tackle the racism she feels in this new group. I think a lot of middle grade readers will enjoy this and I particularly liked her mother's advice.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC of this book.

Partly Cloudy by Tanita S. Davis gives keen insight into the many microaggressions white people enact against Black people without a thought on their impact. Because of a terrible sixth grade year at school, and a few changes in the family situation, Madalyn begins to live with her great uncle Papa Lobo during the week. She attends a new school becoming the only Black student in her grade. While she makes new friends, one begins to say and do things that make Madalyn uncomfortable and Madalyn must decide how to have the uncomfortable conversation about race.

Due to an unsettling 6th grade year, Madalyn is living with her great-uncle, Papa Lobo 4 days a week so she can attend a better school. In her new class, Madalyn is the only black girl, but on her first day she makes some new friends. Madalyn feels uncomfortable with some of the things one of the girls is saying and she isn't sure if she can stay friends with her. When a fire impacts both of them, the girls have an opportunity to have some difficult discussions.
This book, while being an enjoyable and very "teachable" read is a quiet book. For those students who are content to read about every day moments and sink into a comfortable read, this is one to recommend. Otherwise, there is not much action and very little plot development.

I’ll be adding this to the middle school library. I do think that the book lightly touches on some tough issues but loses some impact due to the way the author skirts the issue. I do love the message and the cast of characters.