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Book Excerpt, Features, Giveaways · May 7, 2021

The Kate in Between: Excerpt + INTL Giveaway

the kate in between excerpt

I LOVED Claire Swinarski’s forthcoming sophomore middle grade novel, The Kate in Between. Kate’s voice is unique, realistic, and honest, and this story tackles so many timely themes, from going viral to bullying and a mother in an MLM scheme. I’m excited to share my review soon, as well as a lovely interview with the author. Today, however, Claire is sharing an excerpt of the book with my readers and providing the opportunity to receive a free copy of the book. Find out how to enter at the end of the post.


There’s nothing more embarrassing than being driven to school in a cop car.

I scooted down as far as possible in my seat. It wasn’t even one of those plain white, unmarked vehicles that hide around corners waiting for speeding teenagers to drive by. Nope, it was a good ol’-fashioned copper-mobile, with the words Madison Police Department in huge letters slapped across the side.

“This is humiliating,” I muttered.

Dad glanced over at me and shrugged. “Sorry, Bird. These are my only wheels.” Dad had a take-home car from the city of Madison so that he could be at work the minute he left his apartment. Just in case he had to pull over some speeding truck driver on the way to the station.

“I could have walked.”

“What kind of dad would I be if I let you hoof it a mile and a half?”

“Mom let me,” I muttered.

Dad sighed and pulled up to the school drop-off.

Okay, fine. It wasn’t his fault I was stuck in an apartment that was a full mile farther away from school than Mom’s rental had been. But it wasn’t mine either.
We’d had this exact same conversation almost every single day for the past month. Ever since I came home from school to find Mom packing  our life, shoving things haphazardly into boxes, and found out that I’d be moving in with my dad.

My mom was a salesperson for True U Cosmetics. She sold lip liner and eyeshadow to other moms, convincing them to ditch their cubicles and offices for a life of #TrueFreedom. Sometimes, when things were going well, she’d get sweet perks: a cruise trip here, a bonus there, a FaceTime call with the company CEO, who praised Mom’s team-building skills.

But when things weren’t going well . . . we moved.

Key word: we.

We were always in search of a cheaper apartment farther away from the university’s campus, one without bats or loud undergrads raging the floor above us. But this time, she’d flown solo, dropping me at Dad’s apartment building with a Truly Ruby-colored kiss on my cheek. She said she had to go “step into her spotlight”—the True U motto, proclaimed in sparkly letters on her Toyota Camry’s bumper. She needed to go to Utah, where True U headquarters was expanding. More opportunity to recruit her downline, the women she taught to sell makeup and got bonuses from. There would be more opportunity for throwing home makeup parties where customers could be dazzled by the new deals on mascara, too, meaning more opportunity to Follow Her Dreams. Thanks to her hard work, she told me, there was a True Emerald on every block. Mom was a True Sapphire, the next rung up on the ladder. She was trying to get all the way to True Diamond, where you’re given a True Tesla and get recognized at all the national conferences.

But I couldn’t go. It was the middle of the school year and the basketball season, and besides, I didn’t want to move to Utah. I tried to convince her to stay, insisting that I didn’t care if she came to basketball games to sell mascara to other girls’ moms and sisters. But it didn’t work. She was moving out west, and I was moving in with Dad.

In one night, I had packed up my entire life. It’s not like I had a lot of stuff—when you move as much as we did, it’s easier not to haul tons of crap around. Dad lived on the sixth floor of an apartment building, the kind with ugly hotel carpeting. The Windy Willow Brook apartment complex had just gained a new resident: me. I didn’t even have a room, just a pullout bed in Dad’s office.

Mom liked sudden things. Changes of plans, spontaneous desserts, vacations taken without calling school to tell them I’d be gone. Schedules made her itchy—they weren’t quite as fun as dreams, which she liked to scrawl out on her #GirlBoss whiteboard. Dad liked order, plans, and bullet points. Reason #87 on my I’m Not Sure How They Were Ever In Love list, but they must have been at one point. I have an old photo I love: the two of them, after prom, Mom’s belly already big with yours truly, Dad’s eyes happy and bright, their arms flung around each other in the school parking lot. They just look . . . meant to be.

But I guess they weren’t. I wasn’t even a year old when they broke up. 

My move happened four weeks ago, so you’d think I would have gotten used to riding to school in a police car. But it was still weird, every single morning.

I grabbed my backpack from the spot between my feet. I could have put it in the backseat if it hadn’t been for the window of bulletproof glass blocking it.

“I have basketball practice after school,” I reminded him. “Be home late.”

“Got it. You need a ride?”

“No. Houa’s mom can drive me.” I shut the door as hard as I could before he had a chance to say no. Getting a police escort around town made me feel ridiculous.

“Hey,” he said, rolling down the window as I bounded up the steps to school. “Have a good day. We can get ice cream from Ella’s Deli after dinner tonight, okay? I love you.”

“Are you bribing me with ice cream to try and put me in a good mood?”

“Is it working?”

I rolled my eyes. “Love you too.”


You can enter this giveaway using Rafflecopter below. The giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY and closes on May 18. I’ll email the winner the day after to get their details. You can also pre-order The Kate in Between on Amazon. Read my last interview with Claire and my review of her debut middle grade book here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Comments

  1. Musing of Souls says

    May 7, 2021 at 7:06 am

    Thank you for this giveaway! I absolutely love reading Ya And MG books!

    Reply
  2. Lisa Ball says

    May 7, 2021 at 7:44 am

    Wow! What a powerful and timely book. Can’t wait to read it.

    Reply
  3. Alexis Ennis says

    May 7, 2021 at 9:21 am

    Thank you for the chance!

    Reply
    • Hada Alsousi says

      May 7, 2021 at 2:28 pm

      I entered this giveaway! can’t wait!

      Reply
  4. Elisa Marks says

    May 7, 2021 at 6:45 pm

    We just read about this book in The Week Junior!

    Reply
  5. rosihollinbeck says

    May 7, 2021 at 10:49 pm

    Great beginning to a book. I will be looking for this one. Thanks for the chance to win.

    Reply
  6. Susan says

    May 8, 2021 at 2:44 pm

    This sounds like an interesting read. When my kids were little, they were always excited if dad gave them a ride to school in his cop car, but I suppose it would be more embarrassing if you were older.

    Reply
  7. Lis Moriarty says

    May 9, 2021 at 9:58 pm

    Very excited about this book – thanks for adding to to my tbr

    Reply
  8. jcamp2020 says

    May 10, 2021 at 10:47 am

    Thank you for introducing me to this book. It sounds so good. Putting in on my TBR list. Lots of conflict here.

    Reply
  9. Anonymous says

    May 11, 2021 at 9:21 am

    I’m so keen to read this! i entered for the giveaway but regardless of whether I win or not, I’ll be reading this book anyway!

    Reply
  10. Michelle M. says

    May 12, 2021 at 12:30 am

    I look forward to your newsletter every week! Thank you for offering this giveaway!

    Reply

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✨how ‘bout a little virtual reality?✨

☀️ Addie has reluctantly moved across the country with her dad for his summer job in the virtual reality industry. He's working on research to use VR for therapeutic purposes, such as helping people cultivate empathy. Addie is not into VR, but that starts to change when she meets Matteo another kid on campus, and tries out VR on her own. Eventually, the two find a helpful use for VR that helps other people.

🥽 I loved the illustration style in this one and while I found the VR setting a bit disorienting, I appreciated the unique lens of the story. The graphic novel format works brilliantly for helping readers appreciate the power of VR. I think with text, it would have just been too much “world-building.” This is more engaging and exciting for kids.

🐢 Lo and Behold is a clever middle grade graphic novel about virtual reality, grief, and parental addiction. Readers who enjoy VR will love this one, but as the Author's Note mentions, it will also be a fantastic introduction for those who, like me, aren't familiar with it. A fun summer read with hints of serious themes.

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✨surprisingly heartwarming middle grade✨ 🗺 ✨surprisingly heartwarming middle grade✨

🗺️ Ginny’s summer is thrown off when her dad gets a surprise redeployment in the middle of their family’s moving to another city. Then, her geography camp gets canceled. Her sister seems to be making new friends, but no one appears to like Ginny–even when she starts her own geography camp. 

❤️ I loved this book way more than I thought I would (from the synopsis). Ginny has such a great voice and she isn’t always the most likable character but she’s always real. I loved watching her grow throughout the story.

📍This sweet, unique young middle grade book made my heart grow and ache for Ginny and her family as they navigated a season of change. Features illustrations and a new geography fact in each chapter.

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My current adult reads! HAPPY TRAVELER is a non- My current adult reads! 

HAPPY TRAVELER is a non-fiction title about making travel work for you and creating enjoyable, memorable experiences. So far, I’m enjoying the author’s musings on travel.

HELLO BEAUTIFUL is a bookstagram darling (need I say more?) and I already know I’ll be reading it for a while. It’s one of those books that really forces you to slow down. The writing is so tender; it feels like the author loves her characters ❤️

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✨growing up is full of bumps on the way✨ 🤓 ✨growing up is full of bumps on the way✨

🤓 Sixth grade is off to a rocky start for Rex. His district moved most of his elementary school to another middle school, his best friend ditches him for the popular crew, and his blurry vision means he has to get clunky new glasses–the only kind his family can afford. 

❤️ This sweet graphic novel for fans of Telgemeier is an ode to middle school, family, and finding your people.

#graphicnovel #middleschoolbooks #kidlit
Do you like to hop on the “buzz train”? I find Do you like to hop on the “buzz train”? I find that buzzy books are often worth the hype. Even the few people who dislike them tend to have STRONG feelings about them 👀 which to me is a sign that the story got to you somehow. Of course, not every book is for every reader — hype or not. I share my tip for finding a hyped book that matches your reading tastes.

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✨a different kind of sunshine✨ I loved this g ✨a different kind of sunshine✨

I loved this graphic memoir about the author’s time as a counselor at a camp for kids with cancer. It was my first time reading anything by this author and I totally get the appeal.

This one didn’t end up being as sad as I thought it would be but it was very moving, especially because Krosoczka shares newspaper clippings and pictures of one the families with whom he forged a particularly close relationship even until his college years.

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✨a devastating debut✨ This book! Brilliantly ✨a devastating debut✨

This book! Brilliantly written, impressive characterization, and a plot so unexpected. It left me physically shaken (it's not feel-good), but it feels so necessary, so timely. A solid debut about the search for the great American Dream, familial sacrifices, and confronting our ugly inner selves -- all in less than 300 pages. 

You'll like this if you like:

Multiple perspectives (3 perspectives, 3rd person POV)
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If you prefer straightforward, plot-rich, fast-paced stories, you might struggle a bit with this one at the start. But it's worth it!

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☀️ Meet the Bookstagrammer ☀️ Hi, new fol ☀️ Meet the Bookstagrammer ☀️

Hi, new followers! It’s such a pleasure to have a few new faces around. I love finding new readers to follow on the gram. 

My name is Afoma and I run a book blog called Reading Middle Grade. I also run a Facebook Group and newsletter related to my blog. In my day job, I’m a freelance writer and editor, with a degree in medicine.

I’ve lived in three continents (born in Nigeria, med school in Ukraine and the Caribbean). I live in Nigeria now with my husband and many, many books 🤭 I love to cook and travel and run. This year, one of my goals is to become a better runner. I’m currently able to run 2K without stopping. 

Even though we don’t have traditional four seasons in Nigeria, the summer months are my favorite. From childhood, they were the one time when my overachieving, perfectionistic self could RELAX. And do nothing! And even now, I try to take time off in the summer to do nothing.

Some of favorite books this year have been LASAGNA MEANS I LOVE YOU, THE LOST YEAR (I lived in Ukraine for 3 years, so this resonated with me!), and MAAME. 

Thank you so much for following my reading journey! Tell me something about yourself — hobbies, favorite books, anything! ❤️
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