Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol

“A gripping and hilarious middle-grade summer camp memoir from the author of Anya's Ghost. All Vera wants to do is fit in—but that’s not easy for a Russian girl in the suburbs. Her friends live in fancy houses and their parents can afford to send them to the best summer camps. Vera’s single mother can’t afford that sort of luxury, but there's one summer camp in her price range—Russian summer camp. Vera is sure she's found the one place she can fit in, but camp is far from what she imagined…” (Goodreads.com)

Vera wants to fit in. She doesn’t feel like she does at home so she picks a camp with people who share a common background. What she learns is that it doesn’t matter what you have in common, it’s how you interact with people that matters. I enjoyed the story but it didn’t wow me. I recommend this book if you like summer camp stories, not so happy endings, coming of age stories based on authors experiences.

Meghan McCabe

Children & Youth Services Librarian

Available at the Langley Adams Library