Sweeping Up the Heart
Written by Kevin Henkes
Narrated by Lisa Flanagan
4/5
()
About this audiobook
From two-time Newbery Honor and New York Times–bestselling author Kevin Henkes, this timeless novel about loss, loneliness, and friendship tells the story of the spring break that changes seventh-grader Amelia Albright’s life forever.
Amelia Albright dreams about going to Florida for spring break like everyone else in her class, but her father—a cranky and stubborn English professor—has decided Florida is too much adventure.
Now Amelia is stuck at home with him and her babysitter, the beloved Mrs. O’Brien. The week ahead promises to be boring, until Amelia meets Casey at her neighborhood art studio. Amelia has never been friends with a boy before, and the experience is both fraught and thrilling. When Casey claims to see the spirit of Amelia’s mother (who died ten years before), the pair embarks on an altogether different journey in their attempt to find her.
Using crisp, lyrical, literary writing and moments of humor and truth, award-winning author Kevin Henkes deftly captures how it feels to be almost thirteen.
With themes of family, death, grief, creativity, and loyalty, Sweeping Up the Heart is for readers of Kate DiCamillo, Rebecca Stead, Lauren Wolk, Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, and Pam Muñoz Ryan.
Kevin Henkes
Kevin Henkes has been praised both as a writer and as an illustrator and is the recipient of the Children’s Literature Legacy Award for his lasting contribution to literature for children. He received the Caldecott Medal for Kitten’s First Full Moon; Caldecott Honors for Waiting and Owen; two Newbery Honors, one for Olive’s Ocean and one for The Year of Billy Miller; and Geisel Honors for Waiting and Penny and Her Marble. His other books include The World and Everything in It; A House; A Parade of Elephants; Chrysanthemum; and the beloved Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse. Kevin Henkes lives with his family in Madison, Wisconsin.
More audiobooks from Kevin Henkes
Olive's Ocean Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Penny and Her Doll Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Year of Billy Miller Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Penny and Her Marble Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chrysanthemum Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chester's Way Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Penny and Her Song Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Owen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sheila Rae, the Brave Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Julius, The Baby of the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jessica Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Weekend with Wendell Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Sweeping Up the Heart
Related audiobooks
August Isle Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Second Life of Abigail Walker Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Junonia Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Sharon Creech Audio Collection Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Underneath Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Checked Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Moo: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5One Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Maybe a Fox Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Great Unexpected Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unfinished Angel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Granny Torrelli Makes Soup Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All He Knew Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Billy Miller Makes a Wish Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Little Bird Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Field of the Dogs Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Saving Winslow Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Steal a Dog Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5River Boy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Night Fairy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Smiles to Go Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Boy on the Porch Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sardines Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Just Harriet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ambassador of Nowhere Texas Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsViolet and Jobie in the Wild Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Center of Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Here in the Real World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Copycat Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Children's Social Themes For You
Talons of Power (Wings of Fire #9) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Sour Grape Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Smart Cookie Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lost Continent: Wings of Fire, Book 11 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Escaping Peril (Wings of Fire #8) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Adventures of Captain Underpants: Color Edition (Captain Underpants #1): Captain Underpants, Book 1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Days With Frog and Toad Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The School for Good and Evil: Now a Netflix Originals Movie Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Bad Seed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Bad Case of Stripes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Good Egg Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dragonet Prophecy: Wings of Fire, Book 1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Darkstalker: Wings of Fire: Legends, Book 1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Frog and Toad Together Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I would, but MY DAMN MIND won't let me: A Guide for Teen Girls: How to Understand and Control Your Thoughts and Feelings Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWinnie-the-Pooh Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Harold & The Purple Crayon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5New Kid Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Happened to Rachel Riley? Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Unwanteds Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bridge to Terabithia Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Narcissism: How to Beat the Narcissist Understanding Narcissism and Narcissistic Personality Disorder Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wish Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Out of My Mind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Kingdom over the Sea Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Unteachables Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The One and Only Ivan Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The School for Good and Evil #2: A World without Princes: Now a Netflix Originals Movie Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Sweeping Up the Heart
31 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Twelve-year-old Amelia's world is pretty small: her mother is dead, her father is emotionally distant, and she relies on the grandmotherly support of their housekeeper, Mrs. O'Brien. It's spring break, and Amelia wishes they could go to Florida (or to France, like her best friend Natalie!), but it appears that she will go no farther than the pottery studio a few blocks away, where she often spends her time losing herself in her art. When Amelia arrives at the studio that week, she meets Casey, the owner's nephew. The two form an immediate friendship -- or is it something more? -- and, on an excursion to a nearby coffee shop, they see a woman who looks surprisingly like Amelia... or, more accurately, like Amelia's mother. When Amelia continues to see the woman around the neighborhood, she starts to wonder: is this woman following Amelia? Does she have a message for her? Is Amelia's mother really dead?Henkes' trademark writing style is gentle, reassuring, with emotional depth, and that's definitely what you'll find in this book. From the cover and the brevity of the book, I expected it to appeal to a younger audience, but the age of the characters and the first crush element sets it in the middle grade range (ages 9-11, I'd say). That may be why it hasn't gotten a lot of attention at my library. It's also set in the spring of 1999, as there are a couple of references to Y2K. I thought maybe it had been published then, but no, it came out in 2019. I'm not sure why it needed to be set 20 years in the past, as it doesn't have a major impact on the story. All that to say, it's a sweet book, but I understand why it hasn't been flying off the shelf.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Amelia wanted to spend her spring break in Florida or France but her father, who doesn’t like to travel, won’t do it. Instead her spring break turns out to be more eventful than expected. Amelia meets 12-year-old Casey at the art studio she frequents. During a game of making stories about people they see on the street, they spot a woman who looks like Amelia’s mother, who died of cancer when Amelia was 2 years old. Amelia has no memories of her but her imagination is stirred by the woman she dubs “Epiphany.” Henkes always has the ability to imbue the quiet and mundane with significant meaning. He expresses the full import of vague but insistent feelings of children.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Thank you to the publisher and edelweiss for this DRC.
This is a sweet story about love and loss and how those two things shape our interactions with the people in our lives.
I empathized with the main character, Amelia. I saw her clay creations, many of which were identical, as a reflection of how she was trying to hold on to what was comfortable in her life. Change can be difficult, especially when it has to do with family.
I did feel as though Amelia presented more like a 5th grader than a 7th grader and there were many times where I thought the author could have delved farther into the story, but I appreciate the overall message.