Beyond Me

Category: Book
By (author): Donwerth-Chikamatsu, Annie
Subject:  JUVENILE FICTION / Age 10-14
  JUVENILE FICTION / General
  JUVENILE FICTION / People & Places / Asia
  JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Emotions & Feelings
Publisher: Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books
Published: June 2021
Format: Book-paperback
Pages: 320
Size: 7.62in x 5.12in x 0.80in
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Additional Notes

From The Publisher*"An essential read…with a message of hope and community." -Booklist (starred review)

In the spirit of A Place to Belong, this "moving" (Kirkus Reviews) novel-in-verse examines the aftershocks of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan in 2011 through the eyes of a young girl who learns that even the smallest kindness can make a difference.

March 11, 2011
An earthquake shakes Japan to its core.
A tsunami crashes into Japan's coast.
Everything changes.

In the aftermath of the natural disasters that have struck her country, eleven-year-old Maya is luckier than many. Her family didn't lose their home, their lives, or each other. But Maya still can't help feeling paralyzed with terror, and each aftershock that ripples out in the days that follow makes her fear all over again that her luck could change in an instant.

As word of the devastation elsewhere grows increasingly grim-tens of thousands have perished-it all seems so huge, so irreparable. Already flinching at every rumble from the earth, Maya's overcome with a sense of helplessness and hopelessness. How can her country ever recover, and how could anything she does possibly make a difference?

Before Maya can extend a hand to others, she must dig deep to find the hidden well of strength in herself in this sweeping, searing novel that shows even small acts can add something greater and help people and communities heal.
Biographical NoteAnnie Donwerth-Chikamatsu's debut novel Somewhere Among, based on life in a bicultural multi-generational home in Tokyo, won the Freeman Award, SCBWI Crystal Kite Award, Writers' League of Texas Book Award, and was a Bank Street Best Book of the Year. She still lives in Tokyo, Japan, after raising two children and experiencing the 2011 earthquake and aftershocks. After inheriting the garden work from Great-grandfather and Grandfather, she has spent a lot more time gardening. It keeps her grounded.