Oh sweet J.P. I have been where you are. How many times have I wished that I could just skip ahead through life's hardest moments? I never thought about what I would truly miss if I did, however. This novel gives readers some great perspective on the importance of living in the moment, even and especially when life feels really, really hard.

J.P. is having a rough time in 7th grade. Her father has just passed away, and she misses him terribly. She has a great mom, a grandfather that she loves very much, and a best friend who would do anything for her. But when J.P. discovers that the neighbor's tree house, where she often runs away to escape the world, is an actual time machine that can jet set her a few days forward in time, she realizes she's got the fix for dealing with these really difficult problems. Maybe if she can just skip them altogether, she'll feel better. But when skipping the hardest moments means missing the most joyful ones, she begins to understand that the magic of life isn't being able to skip the hard parts, but learning and living through them instead.

This book was beautifully written, with characters I wanted to scoop up and hug. I loved the messages here, including the wonderful passage with J.P.'s mom about how we need to love our bodies, no matter what they look like.

Great book, and such a sweet story.

This is an interesting take on the time travel narrative, the idea of skipping over difficult encounters and the strain that missing important things takes on relationships. The characters here are complex and messy and believable, their relationships realistic. It's an uncomfortable read but a strong one.

Would you skip the bad parts of life if you could? That is exactly the position that J.P. is facing once she discovers a magic portal that allows her to skip through moments of her life. J.P. finds herself in tough situations with bullying, body shaming, and grief.

In THE THINGS WE MISS, J.P. finds herself struggling in seventh grade. She’s uncomfortable in her body, which is only reinforced by comments made by some of her classmates and even unwittingly by her own mother. She escapes to a treehouse in a neighbor’s yard and discovers a door that lets her “skip” ahead in time. While this seems amazing at first, her absences begin to take a toll on her schoolwork, friendships, and relationships with her family, and J.P. finds that she needs to evaluate the consequences of avoiding the tough situations in her life.

J.P.’s relationships with others—her mother, her Pop Pop, her best friend Kevin, her school bullies, and her potential friend Jessi—are authentic and draw the reader into the story. With its unusual take on time travel, this book gives readers a lot to consider. J.P. deals with scenarios around friendship, grief, and self-esteem that may be familiar to some readers, and they may relate to her impulse to avoid challenging times. The message about being present and living in the moment is an important one and THE THINGS WE MISS does a beautiful job of illustrating this through J.P.’s journey.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC of the book.

Really thoughtful and feel provoking debut. Will be using this to discuss life experiences and regrets in a summer course. Hope to see more from the author.

The debut is a beautiful contemporary story that explores self-love and mental health. A worthwhile read for young people and the adults in their lives!

I received a complimentary copy and all opinions expressed are mine.

This book was unexpected and I did not see it coming. It follows J.P who doesn't feel like she belongs and all that changes when she discovers a mysterious door that allows her to travel in time . Travelling in time allows her to skip parts she doesn't want . This book is about everyone that has always wanted to escape a bad hair day. It was a wonderful read that allows me to be reflective of life and it's mishaps. Did not expect it from a middle grade read but so good.

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I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a beautiful, thought-provoking book. I enjoyed it a lot!

2.5 stars. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley!

I wasn't sure how to feel about this book.

The premise was strong. I don't think it deserves 2 stars, but the book could have been made stronger than it was. The reason was that I found myself bored through the first two parts. I know I'm an adult so this book is not for me, but I also work with kids and books a lot, and this one simply didn't grab me. I think pacing could have been improved, along with some plot changes that might've been better suited for young (hopeful) readers.

I loved the idea of the protagonist skipping through life instead of facing the hard things. The book had relatable body image issues and described dissociation pretty well. I also liked Kevin's character (although both he and JP were kind of bad friends, but I guess that's middle school, and you learn how to be a friend as you go).

It was a pretty unique and straightforward depiction of time travel that I haven't seen explored in books—skipping forward mentally while your body stays in the present. Middle school does suck, but JP starts jeopardizing school, her friendship with her friend Kevin, and her other relationships. She even starts missing fun moments, and time spent with her grandpa who has cancer. I liked this idea. I would've liked to see the magical realism pushed a little further.

Speaking of the grandpa, I didn't like how that was handled. I mean, she misses the guy's death! That is so traumatic. I kept waiting for her to find a way to travel back and change things and finally live in the present, but her time travel only allows her to go forward, so she just has to live with the terrible fact that she missed her grandpa's passing (even though she was there physically and held his hand while he died).

This book is time travel, but make it all vibes. I really felt for JP, as she struggles with bullying and traumatic changes in her life - I was right there with her, you know? The Things We Miss would be a great pairing for Starfish (both plus-size MCs who get bullied for their appearances); Wires Crossed (graphic novel) or Mid-Air (novel in verse), both new books featuring friendships in need of repair; or Game Face (novel in verse), in that they both deal with the death of a parent and the mental health fallout. Perfect for grades 7-8, and not too long.

This one has been getting a fair bit of buzz and I went into it excited. I love the premise, but I couldn't get into it--I almost dnf'd about 60% in. The mechanics of the treehouse didn't completely come together for me; I have too many lingering questions about what JP was doing in her skips, if she knew she was skipping, etc. The b story about Pop Pop's cancer was really beautifully done; I would have liked to see more of a connection to JP's grief over losing her dad.

JP is dealing with some pretty serious grief when she discovers a magical door in a treehouse allows her to jump forward in time. At first she is just curious but then she begins to use the door to avoid the things in life she doesn't want to face. An interesting premise that would be great for discussion with middle schoolers.

I should first disclose that the author is a close friend of mine and I'm extremely proud of her work and this being her first published novel!!!

That said, even that aside I adored this book. I sobbed. I adored JP & Kevin and all of it. I want to watch the fictional show that exists in the world of this show (and the movies). I will be recommending this to students (especially those dealing with grief) for many years to come!! The extended metaphors in this book were perfection and it is the kind of book an English teacher would love to teach, as well. Just a wonderful middle grade novel.

This is a really bittersweet book. However, I found myself kind of annoyed at J.P. She was trying to find a shortcut in life, which isn't really a healthy way to live. I like the message of this book, it's you can't always skip the hard part of life because then you'll miss everything else.

I loved this middle grade debut! J.P. is an all too relatable character as she struggles with issues of body image, self-esteem, evolving friendships, and grief. It's got heart, humor, and a great main character finding herself and her strength.

A beautifully emotional middle grade novel about mental health, grief, body acceptance, and self-confidence that begs the question 'if you could skip all the hard parts of life...would you?' J.P. found a magic door in her neighbors tree house that allows her to jump forward in time by 3 days. But in skipping all the things she doesn't want to deal with she might be missing more than she originally realized.

I couldn't put this books down and would recommend it to readers of all ages (9+). It was heartbreaking to be back in the mind of a insecure young person now as an adult but I really loved going through it with our main character and watching her grow into her self throughout the book.

Thank you to Bloomsbury Childrens Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

J.P. finds that a door in a treehouse allows her to skip a few days and when that happens she misses a lot. She begins to like that until her best friend, Kevin, says it feels like you’re gone. He tells her she’s missed most of the school year. When she starts failing classes and Kevin begins eating with other friends and gets mad because she missed something that had plans for, she begins to rethink going to the treehouse. Then J.P. ends up missing out on a family happening. Will she finally stop going to the treehouse? Will she and Kevin become best friends again?

I understand that JP is dealing with grief of losing her father, I know that grief. And I get wanting to tap out and not be here. But I didn't love how much she sinks into this "skipping" and misses so much! She even misses the movie that she so badly wanted to see!
I loved her Pop pop and how gentle he is with her, but still tries to push her to see the best in life.
I am glad that the mean girls are dealt with.
I understood Kevin being upset because JP just isn't there for him, as she is so wrapped up in herself.
I get falling into that deep sadness and wanting everything to be easier, but still you have to step back sometimes and be there for the ones around you.
A heartbreaking read, would recommend for middle grade and up.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

"The Things We Miss" is essentially a book about grief; the ways we cope and the ways we heal. J.P.'s father dies, and understandably, she wants to escape. She finds a door into a place that allows her to skip past three days at a time, but when her grandfather gets cancer, will she continue to escape from the painful things in life or will she find reasons to engage. Stecher writes with sensitively about relationships, grief, and how we process loss. Highly recommended for elementary readers and up. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
#TheThingsWeMiss #NetGalley
Publication Date: May 7th, 2024

J. P. discovers a magical door that lets her skip three days at a time. She's physically there, but she doesn't have to deal with all of the emotions and stress. Her friends and family can't even tell she's gone, at least she doesn't think they can tell. Starting seventh grade and dealing with her beloved grandfather's cancer have given her a lot of feelings she would like to skip.

This sensitive and thoughtful story explores family, grief, and friendship from a unique perspective. The magical door provides a beautiful metaphor for all of the ways kids may see their loved ones "checking out".

I will recommend this to upper elementary and middle school readers.