Freeing Finch

Finch’s real name is Morgan and, if you were to believe her father, you would think she is a boy. But she isn’t. She’s known forever who she really is. Her father left as Finch’s mother battled breast cancer, ultimately losing the battle and leaving Finch in the care of her stepfather, Stan. If it weren’t for her neighbor Maddy, who rescued injured animals, Finch might have buckled under the pressure of cruel kids at school and, at times, even Stan and the woman, Cindee, whom Stan married soon after Finch’s mother died. When an injured, frightened dog shows up at Maddy’s, Finch finds a mission to help the dog have a good life, much as she needs to find the same for herself. It is quite a journey for them both.

Author Ginny Rorby has written one of the most compelling and excellent middle-grade novels in recent memory. Her writing is strong and quite beautiful, the story is peopled with patently real characters, each with a fascinating back story building a frame for the important story of Finch, a story that deserves readership far beyond the middle-grade audience for which it is intended. Don’t miss this book.