Our Little World truly surprised me! Having read the synopsis and seeing the cover art, I assumed it would be a neighborhood set thriller, but instead I was treated to a wonderful slice-of-summer story that encompasses so much more emotion! Don't misunderstand, there are still plenty of surprises throughout, but I love that this story feels so plausible that it could happen in any one of our communities.

Being a child of the 80s, I absolutely love when authors incorporate retro references that evoke feelings of nostalgia. However, I often find that authors just shove these in randomly or that there are so many that it doesn't feel natural. Our Little World does a beautiful job weaving these elements into the story that feel organic and made it that much easier to really feel as if I were experiencing the story with Bee.

I was shocked to learn that this was Karen Winn's debut novel! The character development in this book is great and you truly feel like you can not only understand the children's motivations but can sympathize with sometimes making incorrect choices at a young age.

Thank you Net Galley for this ARC and the introduction to Karen Winn!

I really wanted to love this novel, but yaaawwwn.

After an abduction of four-year Sally Baker rocks a small town, we follow young Borka as she faces ethical dilemmas, struggles with body image and self esteem, and familial drama.

I didn’t connect with Bee at all. She irritated me and constantly overturned the same issues. Her decision making—while totally spot on for a 13-year old—drove me crazy.

I did feel like the abduction and aftermath was well executed and felt fairly authentic. I thought it was a little weird that we didn’t get many answers til the very end but the way the novel was written, I wasn’t even really looking for them (or maybe I just didn’t care at that point). I had an inkling throughout the novel about who had kidnapped Sally but I was way off base so I did like that.

I was more interested in Audrina’s story than Bee’s. I haven’t read much about diabetes, particularly in youngsters so that was a good storyline. I wish the foreshadowing of Audrina’s death had been better executed and there were points in story where I felt the suspense factor could’ve been played up.

All in all, this novel dragged for me. It was well written and fairly unique, but not one I would highly recommend.

Thank you to Dutton Books and NetGalley for the copy.

Title: Our Little World
Author: Karen Winn
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 3.8 out of 5

July 1985. It's a normal, sweltering New Jersey summer for soon-to-be seventh grader Bee Kocsis. Her thoughts center only on sunny days spent at Deer Chase Lake, evenings chasing fireflies around her cul-de-sac with the neighborhood kids, and Max, the boy who just moved in across the street. That and the burgeoning worry that she'll never be as special as her younger sister, Audrina, who seems to effortlessly dazzle wherever she goes.

But when Max's little sister, Sally, goes missing at the lake, Bee's long-held illusion of stability is shattered in an instant. As the families in her close-knit community turn inward, suspicious, and protective, things in Bee's own home become increasingly strained, most of all with Audrina, when a shameful secret surfaces. With everything changed, Bee and Audrina's already-fraught sisterhood is pushed to the limit as they grow up--and apart--in the wake of an innocence lost too soon.

This was definitely not a light and fluffy read. I found it pretty dark. Part of that could be that my younger brother was diagnosed with type one diabetes in 1988—about two years after Drina was—and the issues Drina had with her disease felt so, so familiar. Even leaving that out, Bee is not a happy narrator, and I felt that on every page.

Karen Winn lives in Boston. Our Little World is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Penguin Group Dutton in exchange for an honest review.)

Our Little World by Karen Winn is a coming-of-age novel about two sisters, Bee and Audrina. When a neighbor girl goes missing at the lake one summer, the girls have to deal with stress within their community. Then Audrina gets sick, and Bee goes out of her way to help her little sister. This was a difficult read at times, but the writing was lovely, and I ended up enjoying this story. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

A debut novel full of nostalgia, family secrets, family drama, sisterhood, emotional trauma, anxiety, mental and emotional stress, and heartbreak. It is a sad novel - part coming of age - part mystery. Shows us how emotional stress can affect one's life. Novel centers around a close neighborhood in the 1980's, families that live there, and two sisters as they struggle to grow up. Winn is an excellent writer - excellent character development - good descriptive details. Good novel for book clubs. Will be following Karen Winn and waiting to read her next novel!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC digital edition.

Unfortunately, I was unable to read this in the time allotted. It remains on my “to be read” list for the future.

Touching, sweet, carefully written. What a throwback! My uncle’s childhood was a bizarre parallel to this story and it kinda freaked me out. Funky coincidence! I loved these characters, except… you know who…

Oh I loved this book so much. 1985, on a lake in NJ a little girl goes missing and the lives of so many in a small close knit neighborhood will change. This story follows Bee and her sister Audrina as well as Max and his little sister Sally. It follows them through a brutal summer, middle school and all the things that come with it. I highly recommend this and I loved how the author tied it all together in the end. Great book!

Thank you Dutton Books & NetGalley for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

We follow Borka (Bee) in her family in 1985 in New Jersey with a splash of an opening. Their 4 year old neighbor Sally has gone missing from Deer Chase Lake on an idyllic summer day. Bee's sister Audrina & Sally's brother Max are at the lake as well when tragedy hits. Nobody saw her vanish. Bee and Audrina's sister relationship is put to the test & the story follows the relationship between sisters and family.

There was all the Now & Then nostalgic vibes with a hint of The Lucky Bones. However, I was expecting something a little bit more fast paced. I really wasn't a fan of the main character and it was hard to relate to the sister relationship between the two of them (which is the focal point of the book-- with Sally's disappearance just simmering in the background). I think this book could have been about 100-150 pages shorter.

The ending and the epilogue, however, were really great. I even teared up a little. I felt like she wrapped the story up well and we got all the answers we needed.

FINAL THOUGHTS: A slow paced nostalgic read about the intricacies of a being a sister while dealing with trauma. Not as much of a thriller and more a coming of age.

I really loved this book! From the start, I was drawn in by the writing style, which felt very retrospective told from the perspective of adult Bee reminiscing on her young teenage years. The portrayal of two sisters in the 1980s was relatable and the characters were lovable and well developed. This felt more like a New Adult novel than Young Adult but at the same time was completely something I would have devoured from the Teen section at my library in high school. I found myself really rooting for Bee to work on all of her relationships, including with herself throughout. The familial and other relationships felt very real and complex and I loved it.

A story situated around the 80s, two sisters living in New Jersey near a lake that will hide secrets and stories that soon will be told

Bee and Audrina, two kids ready to enjoy the summer with neighbors and friends, two sisters with different personalities with love/hate relationships, with so much to resolve and so much to forgive.

Bee was always left out feeling like the one who didn't have any looks or something to give, her sister Audrina was the light of every single event or situation even in the eyes of their parents Audrina was always the one to get priced for her looks and her beauty, making Bee feeling like she didn't belong.

Until things go crazy in the town, Max Sister, Sally has gone missing they were only playing by the lake when something strange happened and Sally was no were to be found, this is the moment things between Audrina and Bee started to collapse, Audrina was always letting Bee out of everything, conversations and even plans making her feel always like she was an outcast.

Bee starts making so many mistakes because she feels like no one really cares for her, the more she tried to get close to the situation around is only making things complicated for the whole family and the neighbors.

One of the things that I like about Bee's character is her determination and her resistance, she never gave up no matter how much her parents and sister left her out of it, she will always find a way to move forward even if that was so painful.

Max was a great character too he was a good kid, he was great for Bee, always making her feel like she was welcome and included.

Audrina's character was kind of passive-aggressive, that's how I felt whenever she had something against her sister she may not say anything to her but her behavior was terrible and ill, I really didn't like her character, I can't stand people who are a bully or people who don't "love" her sister as much as she kept saying her behavior was always very arrogant and that never made any sense to me, somedays she was I love you Bee and the next moment she was all uptight.

When I started Our Little World it took me 50% of the book to start liking the story because at the beginning I was really disliking all the drama between the sisters, once I got to the second half of the book the story and the sisters started to make more sense, I was not angry with them anymore, I was starting to understand their behavior and why they were they way they were.

I cried with this story, and I got angry at times but overall it was a story that will grow on you slowly and it will deliver the right message at the end of the book.

Thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Dutton, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of Our Little World in exchange for my honest review

This isn’t just a story of a four-year-old who goes missing from the beach. It’s her neighbor Bee’s insights surrounding the tumultuous summer and all the changes this initiated in her life and other lives in the community over the next year. It’s the story of how one thing happening can change everything, forever.

This moving story tells of young Bee’s observations about her neighborhood and her family when she’s around 12 years old, but adds a few comments about her adult reflections on these memories. It was definitely a sort of "before-and-after" summer for her. When young Sally goes missing, it not only changes the way her entire community operates, but also her personal relationships with her parents and her younger sister. Everyone is processing the grief of not having Sally around, and potentially addressing that their community may not be perfect and safe, with the hope they’re holding out that Sally has just wandered off and will return, miraculously, unscathed.

But Sally’s story isn’t always the most important one, even when Bee and her neighbors want it to be. Other people are still growing, changing, and making choices about their own lives. Adults are still good or bad parents and spouses, and everyone still has good and bad things happen, that usually have nothing to do with Sally being gone.

Bee’s viewpoint from both her young self and her comments about it all once she’s an adult were heartfelt and memorable. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars and loved it not just for the amazingly realistic character Bee was, but for the wholly memorable 1980s setting for it all. This book would be recommended for those who appreciate family dramas, sister stories, and re-living the 1980s.

It took a bit to get into this for me, I was not really a fan of Borka and I was hoping for a bit more 80’s nostalgia. That being said I do believe it was a very well written story and I would definitely read another book by Karen Winn.

Our Little World is a heartfelt debut set in the 1980’s, which we fondly look back on as a simpler time.

Borka is 12 years old this particular summer and there’s a lot going on. Her sister Audrina is a year younger but is the girlier one that attracts more attention. Even her name is pretty, while poor Borka was named after a Hungarian relative who passed away young. Borka is more of a tomboy, I think to fill the role she feels she’s been given.

This summer is special because the Baker family moves to the block. They’re a little fancier than her family, who are stretching themselves thin to be in a good neighborhood with good schools for the girls. A classic immigrant story, they wanted a better life for their kids. Max, around Borka’s age, and Sally Baker, 4, become instant friends with Borka and Audrina. Borka seems sweet on Max but he seems to be looking more at Audrina and so does Sally, even getting Sally’s beloved charm bracelet.

The neighborhood parents all take turns shuttling the kids around to “the club” and the lake for basic 80’s summer suburbia until things take a devastating turn when Sally goes missing in broad daylight from the lake, leaving behind only the charm bracelet.

What follows is equal parts coming-of-age tale and mystery as we know from the start that Sally doesn’t make it and that Audrina would also be dead. The cozy existence and facade of the neighborhood has been rattled.

I was looking more for mystery than coming of age and it had really long chapters so it was hard to find a stopping point and was just not an easy read as I expected it to be. It wasn’t really my cup of tea but it was emotional and well written. I definitely would recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review.

At A Glance
young adult fiction
emotional
reflective
dark
352 pages
debut author

Rating
Four Stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐

About
July 1985. It’s a normal, sweltering New Jersey summer for soon-to-be seventh grader Bee Kocsis. Her thoughts center only on sunny days spent at Deer Chase Lake, evenings chasing fireflies around her cul-de-sac with the neighbourhood kids, and Max, the boy who just moved in across the street. That and the burgeoning worry that she’ll never be as special as her younger sister, Audrina, who seems to effortlessly dazzle wherever she goes.

But when Max’s little sister, Sally, goes missing at the lake, Bee’s long-held illusion of stability is shattered in an instant. As the families in her close-knit community turn inward, suspicious, and protective, things in Bee’s own home become increasingly strained, most of all with Audrina, when a shameful secret surfaces. With everything changed, Bee and Audrina’s already-fraught sisterhood is pushed to the limit as they grow up—and apart—in the wake of an innocence lost too soon.

Perfect for readers of Celeste Ng’s Everything I Never Told You, Our Little World is a powerful and lyrical coming-of-age story that examines the complicated bond of sisterhood, the corrosive power of envy, and how the traumas of our youths can shape our identities for a lifetime.

Review
Our Little World grabbed me from the moment I read the prologue - it's that good! This is Karen Winn's first novel, and I pray it will not be her last! Thank you to @netgalley for allowing me the opportunity to receive this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. (The date of publication was May 3, 2022.)

I think what added extra power to this book for me is that it's almost like reading about my own life (an exaggerated and dramatic version, of course). The sisters, and their relationship, greatly reminded me of my sister and I. It's an awesome book to read as an adult and to share with your teenage readers. Our Little World actually gives the readers a glimpse into many families' little worlds. It contains a lot of valuable life lessons without obviously portraying them as such.

I dropped one star because, while the book is a quick read, I did find that some parts of it dragged on unnecessarily.

I highly recommend this book to everyone! Please add it to your TBR!

When I first began reading this novel I was unsure of where it would go. We start in a small town where friendship is formed, siblings relationships are on the rocks and a missing child has shaken the town.

No one expects anything bad to happen in their town especially a child going missing. At first no one is sure what has happened, they don’t want to believe there is someone in their town who could cause harm to another.

As the town copes two sisters begin exploring life as they navigate loosing a friend, sweet little Sally Baker, only 4 years old.

To me this story was intriguing though I wish the ending was a bit more surprising. There was a lot of build up only to find out what happened in the very last chapter. I did enjoy reading about Audrina and Bee’s relationship develop.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton, and Karen Winn for the opportunity to read this amazing novel!

Unfortunately, this one was tough to finish for me. I have never found a main character less likeable. While it hit some very sensitive topics and dealt with triggering subjects with delicacy, I could not get over the discomfort it caused me to read through the sisterly dynamic. I understand that there are situations like this and relationships that do actually have this sort of dynamic but it was very hard to read.

2 Sisters. 2 Deaths. The powerful bond that is sisterhood.
Synopsis:
This book is about tragedy, family secrets, hope, and ultimately sisterhood. Set in the 80s, the story follows 2 sisters in their small New Jersey town. One summer their safe little world is completely rocked when a young neighborhood girl and friend goes missing.


Wow. Thats the first word that comes to mind when I think about this book. It wasn't at all what I expected. What I thought was going to be a mystery/thriller type book was actually a beautiful ode to sisters and the special relationship between them. I felt all the emotions during this book.
If you have a sister, like I do, I think this book will move you in a profound way.

Although I was initially disappointed that the book wasn't what I thought it was going to be, that feeling quickly disappeared. This book was the first book in a long time that has made me feel so deeply.
The relationship between sisters Audrina and Borka or 'Bee' was so well written. They had fights and they had fun just like most sisters. I found the writing describing their relationships ups and downs to be so relatable. I saw my sister and I so much throughout this book. I would highly recommend picking this one up!

I give this a 3.5.
I enjoyed this story (the ending made me cry, twice!) It's definitely more of a coming of age story and a story of sisterhood, than it is about the missing child. I don't want to spoil anything, but I feel like we were led to believe Audrina was going to go missing next and I was kind of disappointed when that wasn't the case?! I guess I just went into this one thinking it'd be a little different. The author still told a great story though, and there was great character development. I felt like I knew them. It was also easy to relate to them, though it was set around 1985, it has some nostalgia of growing up as a 90s baby.

The title says it will have a small community in New Jersey was I doisted in the 1980s and it's based on 2 familie BEKO CSI Family was from Cheka subaki. She was always I'm pretty and always had problems her sister a UDR INIA was the pretty one and everybody loved her The family next door called baker. Add a boy called Max and And the sister called Sally. They were newcomers to the neighborhood. The mother was very different from the other mothers in the neighborhood. BEE was very friendly with SMAX. Her sister was very friendly with Sally she really liked her because she was pleasant. They just had problems with everybody even at school. This book takes off and see how families can change after a tragedy happens. These father have problems in the past with women And her mother was very very centered in her home. So after this tragedy happened at the lake you can see how the story started to change. There was a lot of different plots and themes in this book going back between these 2 sisters When Andrea came diabetic To change the family in other ways too. Be trying to be really helpful with her and you'll find out what really happens in this book and how tragedy just makes people it makes people realize what you have. There's a lot of strange things how a small community can look other ways too. Something's keen positive through tragedies as well. BE mother became enterprising through her own business