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The List of Things That Will Not Change
Newbery Author

Is The List of Things That Will Not Change Worth Reading?

by Rebecca Stead

Ada’s Score

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Rebecca Stead's middle-grade and YA crossover novel follows Bea, a girl whose parents have divorced and who clings to a written list of constants her father made for her — things that will always be true no matter how life changes. When her father announces he is marrying his partner Jesse, and that Jesse's daughter will become her stepsister, Bea must navigate joy, jealousy, and grief simultaneously. Stead writes with exquisite precision and emotional intelligence, never talking down to young readers while trusting them to hold complexity. It is a quiet, luminous book about the families we make and the love that outlasts upheaval.

Ada Brief

AI reading intelligence

Tender and exact — Stead writes the emotional truths of childhood better than almost anyone. A small, perfect book.

Ada
Spotlight·0:55

A Little Girl's List of Certainties in an Uncertain World

Rebecca Stead has this extraordinary gift for writing children who feel like whole, complicated people — and Bea, clutching her list of things that won't change as her family transforms around her, is one of her best. This book is tender without being saccharine, and it handles the fear of change and the hope of new love with the kind of honesty that resonates well beyond middle grade. Keep it close for any young reader — or any adult who remembers being one.


Book Details

Publisher
Thorndike Press
Published
January 1, 2020
Pages
221
Language
English

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ISBN: 9781101938126

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Ada’s Score

4.3

Ada’s editorial score — not an aggregate of reader reviews.

Common Questions About The List of Things That Will Not Change

Is The List of Things That Will Not Change worth reading?
Tender and exact — Stead writes the emotional truths of childhood better than almost anyone. A small, perfect book. Ada rates it 4.3 out of 5.
How many pages is The List of Things That Will Not Change?
The List of Things That Will Not Change is 221 pages long — around 4–5 hours at an average reading pace.