I mostly lived this book. It was an easy read. Maggie is an energetic narrator as she leads the reader through one year. She is eleven, but very intelligent and precocious. Her father is sick, but, since we are experiencing Maggie‘s perspective, we only know what she knows and understands. The book made me laugh (excellent footnotes) and cry. I was hoping I could share this book with my fifth graders, but there are topics I prefer to avoid.