Gary D Schmidt's new novel is sure to be a hit. The book has elements of adventure that will appeal to both boys and girls. Mr. Schmidt has the ability to develop lifelike, relatable characters. I particularly enjoyed the fact that adults were also vital in a young adult novel. 

I am sure this book will be popular.

Gary D. Schmidt is one of my favorite author's for middle schoolers. His latest book is a great addition to his bookshelf. Well-developed characters, a bit of history, and a quick pace make a great book.

Meryl Lee Kowalski is shattered by the death of Holling Hoodhood, the main character in The Wednesday Wars, in a car accident right before the start of 8th grade. Her parents, concerned for her, decide to send her off to board at St. Elene's Preparatory Academy for Girls. It's a hard transition, because most of the other students are more well-to-do and also have known each other for years. It's a different environment, and it makes dealing with "the Blank", the feeling that descends on her when she is thinking about Holling, both easier and harder. Dr. MacKnockater is the headmistress, who is dealing with a young man, Matt, who has ended up in town, helped out Captain Hurd, and then been found badly injured. Dr. MacKnockater takes him in and acts as his foster mother while trying to get him an education, even enrolling him in her all girls school. Matt has had a life full of trauma, and is on the run from a violent criminal who seems to be able to find him no matter where he goes. He and Meryl Lee take a shine to one another. Meryl doesn't understand the stringent social rules that teacher Mrs. Connolly in particular is insistent on enforcing, and doesn't understand why she can't read John Steinbeck (he's a Communist), talk to the serving girls (they need to know their place), or talk about the Vietnam War (it isn't a suitable topic for conversation). Luckily, Dr. MacKnockater is on Meryl Lee's side, and is able to encourage her. Meryl also finds out that her family situation is changing, and this is another reason she was sent off. She slowlly comes to terms with Holling's death, and the school helps her find new motivations for learning and living. Matt's situation comes to a horrifying head but does get resolved, and Meryl is ready to continue on to high school. 
Strengths: I'm always looking for books set in the 1960s, and boarding schools are always a fascinating setting. There are a few good details about daily like during this time period, with discussions about the war and the relatives that people had off fighting. The tension between Meryl's more progressive views and Mrs. Connolly's traditional ones is interesting. Matt's story is thought provoking, and leads to a very suspenseful end of the book. 
Weaknesses: Holling's death is the single most abrupt and upsetting one I have ever seen in fiction, although Ambrose's death in the television show Ballykissangel comes close; my daughter still hasn't gotten over that.  It's comes as a slap in the face, and rather unprocessed; no wonder Meryl Lee is beside herself. On the one hand, it's very effective writing, but it made me angry for the whole book. Again, effective, but I'm not sure how students will feel about it. Since students rarely look for sequels to books written before they were born, I'm just not sure if this would find many readers in my library. Reading this directly after reading The Wednesday Wars would be excruciating.
What I really think: This is absolutely a well written and interesting book, but I hated the way it made me feel. I almost wish that Matt's story had been told on its own, or that he had been the primary character and Meryl Lee was someone who came into his world.

Chapter 32: The ghoul smiled and turned to look across the commons. “Bingo,” he said. 
I said (upon reading that line), “Please, no. Please do not get preposterous in an otherwise distinguished novel.” 

I’m in my second, now deeper, read-through of Just Like That and am grappling with the plot point that Leonidas Shug, a.k.a. Mr. Higginson, could simultaneously be the leader of a New York to Maine petty crime ring AND a secret service agent assigned to the Vice President’s detail. 

One of the qualities about Gary Schmidt’s writing that have earned him numerous awards is his ability to weave seemingly disparate plot threads and themes into a single beautiful tapestry at the end of his books. Each detail, each reveal, each bit of dialogue is beautifully crafted and carefully placed.  That’s why -for me – the Shug/Higginson character is bewildering. Unlike all the other pieces, it doesn’t fit. It’s a distraction. I’d love to ask Mr. Schmidt about his rationale behind this character. Why would a person who has achieved elite success – again, he’s in the secret service with one of the most trusted jobs in the country, protecting the Vice President – risk it all for a years-long pursuit of child?  To protect his ruthless image? Regain a pillowcase full of hundred-dollar bills? How would this dual life go unnoticed by the FBI? Even with an explanation of the character’s motives, the reader experiences a full-stop, “what the heck?”, in the narrative. I leave it to the 2022 ALA/ALSC Newbery Committee to decide if this is a flaw.

Now for the wonderful, distinguished qualities of Just Like That.  As mentioned previously, Schmidt introduces disparate stories and themes, then takes the reader on a journey which unites them through the experiences of fully realized characters whom readers grow to love by the end of the book. Which is why readers who grew to love Holling in The Wednesday Wars will be shocked to learn of the fate that awaited him just after that novel’s final pages, even if that tragedy allows readers to get to know Meryl Lee in her own story. Just Like That also shares the same coastal Maine setting, characters and themes from Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy. Schmidt’s loyal readers will appreciate the commonalities and reveals, deftly placed as always. Schmidt writes for a discerning audience, encouraging (as in many of his books) a love for classic literature from Shakespeare to Robert Louis Stevenson and L. Frank Baum. Upon her arrival at St. Elene’s, the concepts of Resolution, Accomplishment and Obstacles sound lofty and unrelated to the life of an eighth grader, but Meryl Lee – and the reader- grow over the course of the novel to recognize the strengths they have within and why ideals are worth pursuing.  In many of his books (Okay for Now, Orbiting Jupiter) Schmidt doesn’t shy away from the horrific experiences many young people face – Matt’s story is harrowing – but it’s always balanced with the reassurance that we go on “because all of us have to” (Meryl Lee to Alethea, Ch. 33).  In Just Like That, Schmidt contrasts Shug’s comment to Matt (“You can’t let yourself care…that’s what giving your heart away will do to you every time.” Ch. 36) with Dr. MacKockater’s assessment of Meryl Lee’s Accomplishment: “You are the Tin Woodman, who lost her heart and despite the Obstacles, found it again the only way you can find it: by giving it away.”  Schmidt gives his middle grade audience mature advice: “life doesn’t stop even when horrible things happen” (Meryl Lee, Ch. 39) but that “the future is always in motion” (Dr. MacKnockater, Ch. 39).  Schmidt succeeds in reassuring readers that although life will always have Obstacles, they can triumph. And he does so artfully, with humor and heart, setting his story on the vividly realized Maine seacoast, through characters readers want to follow from one book to another, all in language that flows as gently, powerfully as the ocean.

I need to start off by saying it was such a power move that Schmidt killed off Holling Hoodhood. But one that was pulled off beautifully--because it made me grieve right alongside Meryl Lee. As usual, Scmidt creates a cast of secondary characters that are unique and flat-out wonderful to spend time with. My favorite was probably Heidi, so here is my formal request to the universe that Heidi someday gets a book of her own to swing her field hockey stick around in.