I received an electronic ARC from North Star Editions through NetGalley.
Fully admit tears are coming down my face as I type this after finishing this powerful book.
Readers meet Sage as she is still adjusting to living in a new state with her dad. She lets readers know her mom is gone. Dunlap shows her reimagining a particular day when her mom had an accident and Sage makes different choices to stop it from happening. Sage also receives a letter from her mom's parents inviting her to come and visit with them. This is the first time she has heard from them and readers see her struggle to decide what to do. She does go and wants to find something of her mom's to bring back. Readers can see the support she has from so many people but she can't always see that as she has closed down her emotions and refuses to deal with what happened with her mom.
Dunlap weaves hints throughout the story but connects them with the reimagining Sage does from that November day. I appreciate the connection to the actual running Sage loves and the running from facing situations she has chosen as well. Readers will connect with her and understand complicated family dynamics.

Sydney Dunlap's sophomore novel hits it out of the park. Racing the Clouds is a fast read, but don't let the easiness of Dunlap's prose fool you--as usual, she manages to treat tough topics in a way that is accessible, empathetic, and thoughtful without being overbearing. Sage is a relatable character, and I found myself rooting for her from the beginning. The opioid crisis is a difficult subject to write about for middle-grade readers, but it's also an important one. What I love about a Sydney Dunlap book is that her characters always find hope and are always resilient even in the face of some serious challenges, and this is why I make a point of putting books like Racing the Clouds on all of my recommended book lists.

✰ 2.5 stars ✰

“If we wait until everything’s perfect, it may never happen. We might as well just run.”

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ I wish I could say that I felt that emotional tug at the heart for what Sage had to go through with not only her mother, but her grandparents, as well. But, honestly, I couldn't. For a thirteen-year-old, she was really pretentious, and quite frankly, rather rude and self-involved. I get that she has the right to be judgmental and dismissive of said grandparents who have ignored her existence her entire life, but the way she went about it was just so unflattering and rude that I could not bring myself to sympathize with her. 😒 Even the disobedience she showed against her father at the start - she, somehow, forgave herself for her transgression by making his disappointment about her decision - about herself! 🤦🏻‍♀️

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Maybe it was the author's intention to show that she was making mistakes to be quick to make rash decisions and make opinions without really knowing them. but the way that it was mentioned - so deliberately, with that 'wait, what?'. I can't imagine it possible to be so narrow-minded the way she was portrayed. At times, even when she was only thinking about herself, when she even saw it from another person's eyes - like her father or her grandmother, it was always in the context of something in her favor. If that makes sense. 🙄 That did not sit well with me. I found her very disagreeable. I understand that she has also witnessed a traumatic moment and that she is still harboring some of her own dark thoughts over her mother, but it was just very difficult to convince me otherwise. 🤷🏻‍♀️

“You’ve heard that saying about how you should never judge anyone unless you’ve been in their shoes? I think it’s important for all of us to think about that here.”

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Sage's Grandparents - I kinda sympathized with them; even with their old-fashioned mindset, they did care for their daughter, but simply chose to ignore their granddaughter for their discomfort with who their daughter married. Grandmother Marion's dismissive attitude felt, at times, a bit too caricature-like, but, I wonder whether it was intentional or not to have them at odds with Sage at first meeting, so that she would start to open her eyes and her heart to the good qualities about them. 😥 'How can my grandmother be nonexistent for my entire life until a couple weeks ago and then act all judgy?' I did like her relationship with her Pawpaw, and how he was more forgiving and understanding of Sage's opinions, as well as her decision not to be on a leash while on her visit.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Also, I am truly all about finding yourself and your identity; but, that conversation between Sage and Marla about attraction and crushes; it felt so out-of-place that I was perplexed at how it benefited - well, anything. I did like Alejandro. I liked his matter-of-fact personality and how he was such a helpful friend to her - never afraid to voice his thoughts without fear - 'you’re judging strangers without hearing their side.'. Marla, too, was a new friend who offered her own opinion and advice as someone not familiar with Sage's family history, which helped her try and see it in a different perspective, too.

“I thought I could fix everything. That I could just meet them and talk to them about everything, and they’d finally all be able to make up.”

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ I did like the memories of running with her mother; it was a nice reflection of how it taught her to take things slowly in life - that life is not a race and she will get there when she gets there 'I know that now, and it’s okay. I’m learning to run along with them.' As much as her behavior bothered me, it was nice to see that through her visit to her grandparents in Ohio and revisiting the places that her mother grew up, as well as the memories she shared with her father, was something that brought her closer to them. 🥺 Sylvester was a welcome inclusion to her life, and it was nice to see how he helped build the bridges between Sage and her Grandmother.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ I do appreciate the message of the story and I am glad that it did leave on an unresolved note, since it would be doubtful that thirteen years of negative feelings could be erased within one week. I also appreciate how middle grade reads are approaching substance abuse and how its adverse effects affect the family. I felt Sage's troubled thoughts on her mother's tumultuous behavior to her drug dependency was believable, as well as her longing for the mother that she once was. Her guilt over the events that led to her troubles was heartbreaking and something that I could relate to. But, so many unpleasant emotions of my own radiated while reading that Sage's story that did not hit me as hard as it could have. 😔

*Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sage is struggling with family issues - estrangement from her grandparents, being moved to rural Virginia, issues with her mom - it’s a lot for a girl to process! As the story progresses, we learn more about Sage, more about what she’s dealing with, and I found myself wanting to just give her a big hug. Dunlap writes in a way that the reader FEELS the character’s feelings. This book is great for any young person dealing with addiction in their family, trying to mend family relationships, or just needing supportive adults in their lives. It’s also a window into what a life with addiction may be, and how to find support. Any lover of realistic fiction will love this story!

Sage is an amazing character. I really enjoyed in getting to know her on a personal level.
This is journey of life as she is learning along the way that certain things aren't her fault and I found myself often rooting for Sage as she is "coming"into herself.
Forgiveness and Hope is the main theme of this story. At a heartbreaking one as well rejoicing.
Sage is a stalwart character that tries like me to be peacekeeper among family.
I really enjoyed this story even though it is In Verse style it does have charm. The cover is gorgeous.
My first ever book by this author and I will add this one to my shelf of favorites.
5 stars from me for keeping my interest all the way through. It touched my heart deeply.
I highly recommend it for everyone who loves to read Middle grade books like me.
My thanks for a copy of this beautiful book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

Dunlap's RACING THE CLOUDS is a deeply moving look at guilt and blame, and the importance of forgiving others--and ourselves. This is a must-read for anyone struggling with an imperfect family, who needs a reminder of the courage it takes to seek connection.

This is a great book for middle grade readers. I’ve read this author’s past work and enjoyed this story just as much. It was realistic and able to help make something that can be hard to talk with about kids, more digestible and retainable to younger readers. This is definitely a must read for middle graders.

What an amazing book for kids. Sage has to learn that what happened with her mother wasn't her fault. So many young people blame themselves for adult problems. Kids need more books like this to relate to!

Sydney Dunlap treats her readers to another emotional, relevant and compelling journey with Racing the Clouds. Sage’s story of finding her grandparents while her mother deals with addiction is so authentic kids will automatically connect with her. As Sage struggles with her role in her mother’s accident as well as her family’s division, she finds her voice (and a dog!) and realizes sharing her feelings is the only way to put them all back together. I love the way Dunlap won’t shy away from hard topics, and I appreciate the interview and addiction information and resources at the end of the book. Like It Happened on Saturday, Racing the Clouds is a heartwarming and important work from Sydney Dunlap!

This is another beautiful book by Sydney Dunlap dealing with big issues. Sage is a character with a big heart, but a lot of blame about things that happened with her mother are resting on it. In the process of going to meet her grandparents for the first time, she is hoping to fix all that. But along the way she learns a lot about her family, and how they can help each other in the future.

This deals with the talk of addiction in a family and how it can affect everyone. It talks about getting helping and finding people to lean on. Rough to read in parts, but it is written really well.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

This is a gorgeous story about finding yourself and finding your own family, with or without blood ties being involved.

Sage is struggling with the absence of her mother when an opportunity to meet her estranged grandparents for the first time arrives out of the blue. Much against her father's wishes, she decides to visit her maternal grandparents.

For Sage, it is an opportunity to find out more about her mother's childhood, and perhaps reconnect with a set of grandparents she has never met before. In the process, she finds a new friend - and throughout, she has the support of her best friend back home, who loves his own huge Mexican family and feels that Sage should take this opportunity to meet hers.

But it doesn't take long before Sage and her Grandmother Marion are butting heads, although Sage finds that she gets along very well with her grandfather. But as with so many instances in life, everything turns out to be both more complicated and more simple than it seems.

And ultimately, Sage will return from her trip with insights and experiences that she never expected to gain, that can help her navigate the challenging path ahead. This is a beautiful and emotionally authentic book about friendship and family. Highly recommended.

Sydney Dunlap is a master at making tough topics accessible, kid-friendly, and entertaining. Racing the Clouds gently explores a young girl's reaction to her mother's drug addiction and also explores her reconnection with estranged grandparents. The book does a great job showing how drug dependence develops and impacts a family. There are also light moments when Sage adopts a dog and revisits places where her parents fell in love. I connected with Sage and her friends and was sad when the story ended. I'd love to read a sequel to see how the family adapts once her mom returns home.

It was a little slow in the beginning but overall it was a good book. The end seems a little rushed. A little more development would have been good. I can see it used in schools. I definitely want it on my shelves. And I will be recommending this title to my media specialist.

When 13-year-old Sage receives a letter from the grandparents she’s never met, she’s unsure what to do. Grandmother Marion and Pawpaw never approved of Sage’s father, a struggling rock musician, and her mother was estranged from them. But Sage’s mother is away at rehab, and Sage blames herself for the incident that put her there. Her grandparents want her to visit them in Ohio, which she views as an opportunity to mend the rift between her family.

Sadly, this book wasn’t as impactful as I thought it would be. Maybe it’s that I’ve read other middle grade books with similar premises, but the story was slow to start and ended rather abruptly. I did enjoy Sage’s relationship with her Pawpaw. He was more understanding than Grandmother Marion and allowed Sage to have more freedom during her visit.

I also didn't care for the reasoning behind Marion's distrust of rock music. Somehow it felt out of place in a contemporary novel.

Although this book wasn’t for me, I’m still glad I got a chance to read it. Thank you to Netgalley for the eARC!

Sage has mostly made peace with the move to a trailer park in rural Virginia from her cozy apartment in Philly. Even if there are things she can’t stand to think about. Even if life with just her and her dad gets pretty lonely compared to the boisterous extended family of her friend Alejandro.

But a letter turns everything upside down. The grandparents she has never met want her to fly to Ohio and stay with them for a week.

Award-winning author Sydney Dunlap follows up her debut It Happened on Saturday with another compelling story that handles tough topics with care and compassion. Racing the Clouds delves into a fractured family and the effects of opioid addiction, but always from a place of resilience. Sage is an endearing heroine and the deft use of her memories throughout as she circles around what she can’t yet face makes you understand and root for her. But it’s the finely drawn characters of her family members and friends--both human and canine—that create a masterpiece of healing and hope for tweens (and grown-ups!) to devour.

ARC provided by NetGalley

Sage reflects on the events of November 21st, imagining how things might have turned out differently if she had made other choices. After an accident, her family of three relocates from Philadelphia to the Pleasant Valley Trailer Park in Virginia. There, she quickly befriends Alejandro but avoids attending his family gatherings due to his large family and her own complicated family dynamics.

One day, Sage receives an unexpected letter from her maternal grandparents, whom she has never met. Despite her father’s objections, she decides to spend a week with them, hoping to reconnect with the family she doesn’t know and to learn more about her mother, all in an effort to create a better future for herself.

Through this visit, Sage discovers that her father was once an up-and-coming musician, but he gave up his career to care for his family when she was born prematurely. Tension over dating and eventually marrying a rock star led to a fallout between Sage's mother and her grandparents, resulting in years of no contact.

This is a compelling read for upper middle school students, particularly those who feel stuck in complicated family situations, or whose parents are grappling with mental health challenges and addiction. The Q&A section at the end offers a helpful list of resources for kids who might be afraid to seek help themselves.

Sage hasn’t felt like part of a happy family, and when her grandparents invite her to visit for a week she decides to go. Sage wants to bring back something of her mom’s to help her mom find her way back to herself. Sage finds her grandmother very controlling, and when Sage is late to a party her grandparents were having they get mad. Well, Sage gets mad right back and tells them how she feels, how they never got to know her, how they didn’t like her dad, and where are her mom’s things? Dad shows up to bring her home early and the truth comes out. PawPaw says we have to forgive each other and try and do better. Sage finds out more about her mom and her problems. What happens now?
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

You got me…

Crying and smiling and hugging my reading device more than twice!

The story deals with a thirteen year old girl whose dad is working hard day and night while her mom is in rehab. Her grandparents from her mom’s side suddenly invites her for the first time in thirteen years to visit them. Her dad is a bit reluctant about it considering the past but she knows she will find answers about her mom, her parents, their past and what really happened.

Things doesn’t turned out as expected but you, who’s going to read this emotionally packed book, will know how wholesome the book gets as you read.

The sensitive issues are dealt with very amicably and I do feel this is a very important book on complicated family dynamics.

Thank you, North Star Editions, for the ARC.