JUST LIKE THAT by Gary Schmidt

 

Just Like that by Gary Schmidt

Historical Fiction (United States, Vietnam War)

 Grief, Loss, Humor

387 pages

"The well-phrased writing is understated, endlessly 

engaging, and sometimes suspenseful or amusing."

 (Booklist)

Description

Booklist starred (September 1, 2020 (Vol. 117, No. 1))

Grades 6-8. It’s the summer of 1968. The accidental death of a dear friend

has blindsided Meryl Lee, and grief still overwhelms her at times. Unable to 

face her old school for eighth grade, she enrolls at St. Elene’s Preparatory 

Academy in Maine, where she initially feels isolated from her pretentious 

roommate and other classmates. From the start, she’s intrigued by the strong,

 enigmatic headmistress, Dr. MacKnockater, who seems to understand so much

and whose opening address unexpectedly mesmerizes and challenges Meryl Lee. 

Slowly, she begins to find her way and tentatively makes friends 

while navigating boarding-school life under the watchful eyes 

of her inscrutable teachers. 

Meanwhile, Matt has arrived in the area. A good-hearted, vulnerable boy on the run 

from his sometimes-violent past, he’s befriended by Dr. MacKnockater, who takes 

him in and gradually gains his trust. The Vietnam War isn’t just the story’s backdrop,

but an inescapable, unsettling element of the times, painfully affecting several characters. 

The well-phrased writing is understated, endlessly engaging, and sometimes suspenseful

 or amusing. While fans of Schmidt’s The Wednesday Wars (2007) and Lizzie Bright 

and the Buckminster Boy (2004) will find links to both stories here, this well-constructed 

novel, with its beautifully interwoven strands of narrative, stands on its own. An 

unforgettable story of loss, healing, and finding one’s way.