Abuela, Don't Forget Me continues Rex's memoir. This novel in verse continues to talk about Rex's grandmother who has been an important person in his leave. The story is real and relatable. it showcases the struggles Rex has faced in his life. Recommended for grades 7-10

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me free access to the digital advanced copy of this book.

Rex Ogle once again breaks our heats in Abuela, Don't Forget Me. An emotional read that celebrates the strengthen and love of the woman that accepted Rex. Abuela gave Rex a safe place away from the violence he experienced at home, giving him a new home and hope. This novel in-verse is a heart wrenching read that captures the darkness of Ogle's childhood and the love for his Abuela.

A heartwarming and touching story in verse that brought up lots of memories of my own grandmother and our relationship with each other. Really enjoyed this quick read!

An absolute gut-punch and a reminder of how much we are able to overcome. A true love letter to his Abuela.

This was another gut punch from Rex Ogle. It still amazes me how successful he became despite a very difficult childhood. Obviously his abuela had something to do with it! In his books I always want to cheer for Rex and throttle his mother.

I approached this memoir a little warily once I realized that I had read a previous memoir from this author and not enjoyed the reading experience. Thankfully, this work far exceeded my expectations, most likely because of the framework Ogle used for the book. He filled the book with memories of his abuela, the one constant good thing in his young life as he mourned her passage into dementia. This lent the book hope that "Free Lunch" lacked.

Rex Ogle continues to amaze me with the power and punch of his words. Fellow poet and verse novelist Kwame Alexander says something to the effect of poetry being the building blocks of all writing, that a writer can tell an entire story in just a few words. Both men have this gift - students think they like verse novels because they are short/have only a few words on a page, but really they like them because they are well written and each poem tells a tiny story of its own. I don't think it is necessary to have read Free Lunch before reading Abeula Don't Forget Me, but I think it helped frame my mindset, knowing the relationship child Rex had with his mother, the effects of poverty casting a shadow over their relationship. Rex Ogle is a gifted wordsmith, and I cannot wait to share his newest story with my students; it is an incredible and beautifully written story. Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to preview #AbuelaDontForgetMe - what a powerful piece of art.

In his first two memoirs, Free Lunch and Punching Bag, Rex Ogle focuses on his life of abuse at the hands of his neglectful mother. This third installment captures and celebrates the presence of the woman he could always count on, Abuela.

This was a wonderful tribute to the one person in Rex's life who accepted and believed in him through everything. Written in verse to remind both himself and his Abuela of their lives together as she begins to lose herself to dementia. This is a must-read but get ready to cry!

Everyone deserves to have a person like Abuela in their life.

LOVED this book! Brought out so many emotions! I loved the poetry form of the book. This book depicts the relationship between a boy and his grandmother. We all need a loving and caring Abuela. This book. I cried. So much. Please read this book.

This book is a great companion to Free Lunch. Written in poem form, it shows the importance that people need someone who believes in them even when that person doesn't believe in themselves.

Rex Ogle’s writing is so strong and this novel in verse really pulled the emotions right to the front and center. I loved this tribute to his abuela.

This is a lovely poetry collection, based on the speaker's relationship with his abuela. Abuela is so admirable as a character, constantly showing love even when she has little to give and her daughter seems to have no interest in a relationship or help. The protagonist's story is heartbreaking, but has much for readers to relate to. A valuable read for poetry fans.

Rex Ogle's novel in verse 'Abuela, Don't Forget Me' is a stunning portrayal of a relationship between Rex and his grandmother, the constant source of love and light in an otherwise traumatic time growing up. This book is a companion to 'Free Lunch' which I most certainly now want to go and read. We follow Rex from being a small child through to his graduation from high school. Your heart will break as you read Rex's experiences with an abusive and unstable home life and how it shaped him into the adult he became. His relationship with Abuela is an oasis amidst the turmoil yet he does not shy away from portraying feelings and actions that introduced tension into this partnership. The story is real, raw and sometimes difficult but that is what makes this story so powerful. An easy 5 stars - keep an eye out for anything by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rex Ogle's companion memoir draws the reader in to his environment and situations. Character development is stellar.

This book made me deeply grateful for the Abuelas of the world, but hurt so much for the children who desperately need an abuela. Perhaps need one one and don’t have one. This book made me hurt so deeply, and I wonder if it would re-awaken hurts in students who needed an abuela. Books can be therapy, but I don’t want to traumatize a student. Maybe it would foster some difficult, needed conversations.

Absolutely brilliant. Rex wrote a collection of poems about his life growing up with an abusive mother/home life, constant battles, and a love that wrapped him in a tight embrace even when he didn’t want it.

There is a lot of heartache in these pages but there are also lessons, love, and experiences that shape us and that most can relate to on some level. This book broke my heart to know that Rex lives this. That he went through what I read.

Everyone should read this, even if only to have an understanding of culture, trauma, and shame. It’s absolutely incredibly written.

I do not think I’ve cried so much in a long time, this memoir is a family story about overcoming trauma and hardship, it shows how helping others improves lives, including your own and ultimately shows the love and support of a grandmother can heal. This is such a beautiful memoir, written in verse, a love letter to his grandmother and the vital role she plays in his life.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

This book was awesome!! I love that it was written in verse. It kept my attention so well so I know it will be a good read for my students as well. Rex Ogle is a phenomenal author and I enjoy everything he writes. I appreciate how he truly shares his life story and is so vulnerable with his readers.

Miigweetch NetGalley and Norton Young Readers for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This is a coming of age story centering on the relationship between a boy and his grandmother, told in free verse. The author’s life is one full of dysfunction, violence, and despair, except when he is with his grandmother and the safety of her home. I especially like the very real representation of the relationship between the author and his grandmother - his abuela - and how she is caught with constantly trying to do damage control with the author’s mother’s destructive life decisions; this part of the book felt very relatable.

Unfortunately, I did not connect with this story as I had hoped I would. I found the prose clunky and slap-shod; it felt more like a stream of consciousness than actual poetry. I could see some poetic devices at play, such as repetition, echoing, etc, however, it wasn’t enough to make me feel like this was a deliberate writing attempt and not words chaotically dripped onto the page. I wish more of the titular part of the story had been address; that is, the loss of Rex's abuela due to her dementia. This is touched on in the author's forward but barely makes a blip in the main narrative before the book rather abruptly ends.

Nevertheless, I believe middle schoolers would read this for a poetry unit given the chance, simply because they would regard it as “easy.” I do think that middle and high school, as well as public libraries in general, would benefit from having this title on their shelves as it deals with topics we don’t often see reflected in literature but are more relatable for our students than we may realize.