"Being Fishkill" by Ruth Lehrer (Updated)

Being Fishkill by Ruth Lehrer is about a young girl who makes her first name Fishkill because it sounds tough.  She feels she has to be tough because her mom is gone, and there is no one else!  This book was way better than I thought it would be.  I really wanted only the best for Fishkill.  The pacing of this book was very good and I was always glad to get back into it!  I liked that it had twists and turns that I did not see coming.  Pick it up, you will be glad you did!

Teaser from page7:  "I'm not in your gang."  I said.  I wasn't sure if I wanted to be or not, even if it was a real gang.
(Gerard's review, 5+ stars)

Karen's review, 12/22/17:
Being Fishkill by Ruth Lehrer is about a 12-yr.-old girl who is poor and lives in a shack with her drunk/druggie mother and her abusive grandfather. Her father is unknown. She finally built a friendship with a girl who called herself Duk-Duk and moved in with her and her lesbian mother who was very nice to Fishkill. After the mean grandfather died, Fishkill’s mother tried to sober up so she could get back custody of her daughter. Most of this story is sad.

I liked this book all right but could have done without the Lesbian angle. I felt bad for Fishkill and her biological mother. My favorite character was Duk-Duk because I liked how she wanted to be a lawyer and tried to view everything logically. This book had some interesting situations and really addressed the emotions one feels when a loved one dies. It also had a bit of humor when Fishkill and Duk-Duk came up with their secret mission to get revenge on the girl who bullied them—that was very cool and my favorite part of the book! (4 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!