Review: The Things We Miss
The Things We Miss
by Leah Stecher
Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2024
Category: Middle Grade
Reviewer: Judy Ehrenstein
Buy at Bookshop.org
Seventh grade is NOT a good time for J.P. (Joan Phyllis). Her father has recently died, her beloved grandfather, Pop Pop, has a recurrence of cancer, and mean girl Miranda is determined to body shame her at school whenever the chance arises, be it in PE, the cafeteria, and even at the mall. Only her best friend Kevin, with whom she shares a passion for the sci-fi comic book and tv show “Admiral K” can bring her some semblance of happiness, especially when planning for the opening of an “Admiral K” movie. In an attempt at an escape from her unhappiness, J.P. climbs up to a neighbor’s old treehouse and discovers a secret: it is a portal through time, roughly allowing her to “skip” 3 days. Her body is present but her memories of those days are gone! What a perfect way to get through the school year! Or is it? Sure, the tedium and torture are avoided, but so are important things, like school assignments and good interactions with other kids, but also the movie premiere and Kevin telling her his parents are splitting up. And then there’s Pop Pop, whose last days J.P. spent in a skip. How will she ever reckon with not being present for others when they needed her most? Sometimes the only solution to reality is facing it, not hiding from it.
The magical aspect is not totally clear: do others realize when J.P. is in a skip or is the lack of memories, except for what she records in a notebook, the only side effect? There is a flatness to the emotions expressed by J.P., her mother, and Pop Pop and it is curious that the father’s death is only mentioned in reference to how much he, too, loved “Admiral K”. The various discussions about this pop culture element may resonate with some readers and serve to lighten an otherwise heavy story.
That J.P. and her family are Jewish is only mentioned in a few places: Pop Pop attends a weekly Torah study, brisket and latkes are made for a dinner during Hanukkah, it is stated that the family is culturally Jewish but not religious, and the funeral is held shortly after death. The plot doesn't depend on any of this but the casual Jewishness will be noticed by readers who may not see their family’s Jewish practice reflected in books.
Seventh grade is NOT a good time for J.P. (Joan Phyllis). Her father has recently died, her beloved grandfather, Pop Pop, has a recurrence of cancer, and mean girl Miranda is determined to body shame her at school whenever the chance arises, be it in PE, the cafeteria, and even at the mall. Only her best friend Kevin, with whom she shares a passion for the sci-fi comic book and tv show “Admiral K” can bring her some semblance of happiness, especially when planning for the opening of an “Admiral K” movie. In an attempt at an escape from her unhappiness, J.P. climbs up to a neighbor’s old treehouse and discovers a secret: it is a portal through time, roughly allowing her to “skip” 3 days. Her body is present but her memories of those days are gone! What a perfect way to get through the school year! Or is it? Sure, the tedium and torture are avoided, but so are important things, like school assignments and good interactions with other kids, but also the movie premiere and Kevin telling her his parents are splitting up. And then there’s Pop Pop, whose last days J.P. spent in a skip. How will she ever reckon with not being present for others when they needed her most? Sometimes the only solution to reality is facing it, not hiding from it.
The magical aspect is not totally clear: do others realize when J.P. is in a skip or is the lack of memories, except for what she records in a notebook, the only side effect? There is a flatness to the emotions expressed by J.P., her mother, and Pop Pop and it is curious that the father’s death is only mentioned in reference to how much he, too, loved “Admiral K”. The various discussions about this pop culture element may resonate with some readers and serve to lighten an otherwise heavy story.
That J.P. and her family are Jewish is only mentioned in a few places: Pop Pop attends a weekly Torah study, brisket and latkes are made for a dinner during Hanukkah, it is stated that the family is culturally Jewish but not religious, and the funeral is held shortly after death. The plot doesn't depend on any of this but the casual Jewishness will be noticed by readers who may not see their family’s Jewish practice reflected in books.
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