Let's Pretend We Never Met

by Melissa Walker

Overview

“I love how this book gets the fragile ecosystem that is middle school. There’s a purity to the voice that feels very real, very Judy Blume. Loved it!”—R. J. Palacio, author of Wonder

The Thing About Jellyfish meets The Kind of Friends We Used to Be in this sweet, honest middle grade debut.

If it were up to Mattie Markham, there would be a law that said your family wasn’t allowed to move in the middle of the school year. After all, sixth grade is hard enough without wondering if you’ll be able to make new friends or worrying that the kids in Pennsylvania won’t like your North Carolina accent.

But when Mattie meets her next-door neighbor and classmate, she begins to think maybe she was silly to fear being the “new girl.” Agnes is like no one Mattie has ever met—she’s curious, hilarious, smart, and makes up the best games. If winter break is anything to go by, the rest of the school year should be a breeze.

Only it isn’t, because when vacation ends and school starts, Mattie realizes something: At school Agnes is known as the weird girl who no one likes. All Mattie wants is to fit in (okay, and maybe be a little popular too), but is that worth ending her friendship with Agnes?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062567178
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/15/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.60(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	840L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Melissa Walker grew up in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and is the author of eight young adult novels, including the Violet on the Runway series and Small Town Sinners. In the nonfiction world, she is a magazine editor and writer who works from the comfort of coffee shops in Brooklyn, where she lives with her husband and two young daughters. Find Melissa on Twitter @melissacwalker or visit www.melissacwalker.com.

Editorial Reviews

Mattie Markham is sweet and winning, very real, and a sixth-grade heroine. Add this book to your treasure shelf.” — Natalie Standiford, author of The Secret Tree

“A heartwarming and completely charming story about moving on, growing up, and being yourself.” — Sarah Mlynowski, New York Times bestselling author of the Whatever After series

“A gentle look at the challenges of both fitting in to a new situation and having a friend with special needs.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“An accessible chapter book with a clear but gently delivered
message.” — Booklist

“I love how this book gets the fragile ecosystem that is middle school. There’s a purity to the voice that feels very real, very Judy Blume. Loved it!” — R.J. Palacio, author of Wonder

From the Publisher

Mattie Markham is sweet and winning, very real, and a sixth-grade heroine. Add this book to your treasure shelf.

Natalie Standiford

I love how this book gets the fragile ecosystem that is middle school. There’s a purity to the voice that feels very real, very Judy Blume. Loved it!

R.J. Palacio

An accessible chapter book with a clear but gently delivered
message.

Booklist

A heartwarming and completely charming story about moving on, growing up, and being yourself.

Sarah Mlynowski

A gentle look at the challenges of both fitting in to a new situation and having a friend with special needs.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

04/10/2017
Moving states and schools midyear has 11-year-old Mattie worried, but when she meets her outgoing and eccentric new neighbor Agnes—a girl just her age—she’s comforted to have made a fast friend. But Mattie quickly realizes that being friends with Agnes at school, where Agnes is called “freak of nature” and “kind of off,” is harder than when they’re alone in their apartment building; as Mattie makes a wider group of friends, she is tested to stay true to what she knows is right: “I like being friends with Agnes, as long as we’re at home and it’s just us.” The story is structured around Mattie’s rich relationships with her parents and her grandmother (who is dealing with old age and memory loss), as well as her own transition from her old friends in North Carolina to the social opportunities in suburban Philadelphia. In this quiet but satisfying piece of realistic fiction, Walker (Ashes to Ashes) lays down real inroads to understanding different ways of being and the challenges and worries that accompany distinct stages of life. Ages 8–12. Agent: Douglas Stewart, Sterling Lord Literistic. (June)

Publishers Weekly

A gentle look at the challenges of both fitting in to a new situation and having a friend with special needs.

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

An accessible chapter book with a clear but gently delivered
message.

Booklist

06/01/2017
Gr 4–6—Changes are coming fast for 11-year-old Mattie. First, her family decides to move to her grandmother's town over winter break, the absolute worst time to change schools. Then Mattie's parents begin acting oddly toward each other, and her grandmother seems to be forgetting too many things. Mattie meets the formidably smart and effervescent Agnes but is afraid that associating with Agnes, who's different from other kids, will make it harder for her to fit in. Mattie becomes interested in befriending boys, too, and she guiltily shuns Agnes in order to improve her social life. This tale of tween angst is distinguished by strong writing and well-drawn characters. Mattie's thoughtful introspection adds depth; she is sympathetic and likable but not perfect. Her friendship with Agnes, whose behavior seems to suggest she is somewhere on the autism spectrum, drives much of the plot and is very well portrayed in all its difficulties and rewards. The pacing is swift, with Mattie's dilemmas rapidly becoming ever more complex. VERDICT Hand this to readers who love a good coming-of-age story and to those looking for representations of neurodiverse characters, like Rain in Ann M. Martin's Rain Reign or Willow in Holly Goldberg Sloan's Counting by 7s.—Gretchen Crowley, formerly at Alexandria City Public Libraries, VA

School Library Journal

2017-03-29
You make a quirky new friend whom other kids shun. How to manage this friendship and still fit in at school?That's the dilemma white 11-year-old Mattie faces when her family moves from North Carolina to suburban Philadelphia. Mattie's just settling in when she meets her white next-door neighbor and classmate, Agnes P. Davis, who's the same age, creative, fun, and dizzyingly offbeat. Other stuff's going on: Mattie's adjusting to being the new kid in the middle of the semester; Mama's job hunt isn't going well; her parents seem to be drifting apart; and her beloved grandmother must soon move into a retirement home. Mattie's first-person, present-tense narration sounds authentic and makes clear that there's more to Agnes than mere eccentricity: she's supersmart and sweet, but some behaviors suggest that she may fall on the autism spectrum, though this is never overtly stated. When Mattie meets new pals (described as racially diverse) and even a boyfriend, she denies any relationship with Agnes, viewed as beyond weird by their classmates, to avoid ostracism. This leads to guilt, much soul-searching, and, eventually, realistic personal growth and a fuller understanding of Agnes. In a satisfying if pat ending, Mattie determinedly helps her new friends—who've always acknowledged Agnes' high intelligence—recognize and warily accept their classmate's strengths, talents, and differences as assets. This honest, pleasant ode to true friendships draws readers in and offers gentle, kid-friendly guidance to maintaining relationships that matter. (Fiction. 9-12)

Kirkus Reviews