Twelve-year-old Annie loves to run. So does her best friend, Max. But while Annie runs for the sheer joy of it, Max is running to get somewhere. He sees a future track scholarship as a means of escaping their small town. Neither quite understands the other’s point of view, and the fact that she and Max are suddenly at odds over running is just one more change for Annie at a time in her life when everything seems to be shifting. Her mom is pregnant and her grandfather is growing confused. Even something as simple as an apple can change in unexpected ways. For Annie, life is precious and confusing all at once. Annie loves to draw, and through art, she begins to understand that there is more than one way to look at everything, including the events in her life. These changing perspectives help her feel that the ground beneath her feet is solid once again. Sharon Creech’s second novel in poems beats with the rhythm of many hearts and hopes and dreams. (Ages 10–14)

Run run run.

That's what twelve-year-old Annie loves to do. When she's barefoot and running, she can hear her heart beating . . .

thump-thump, thump-thump.

It's a rhythm that makes sense in a year when everything's shifting: Her mother is pregnant, her grandfather is forgetful, and her best friend, Max, is always moody. Everything is changing, just like the apple Annie's been assigned to draw a hundred times.

Newbery Medal winner Sharon Creech masterfully weaves this story about a young girl beginning to understand the many rhythms of life and how she fits within them.