Friday, January 5, 2018

One for the Murphys


"We can have whatever we want in our lives. It's only a matter of deciding. But we don't have to do it alone. We have each other."
― Lynda Mullaly Hunt, 
One for the Murphys



Twelve-year-old Carley Connor’s life turns upside-down when she's sent to live with a foster family hundreds of miles away from her Las Vegas home. Her life with her mom hasn’t always been easy, but Carley is tough and has been able to handle things. Now she’s worried about her mother, confused about what happened, and doing her best to be invisible at the Murphys. While Carley feels welcome by Mrs. Murphy, who never stops smiling, the oldest son (who is her age) makes it clear he wants her to leave. The two younger boys don’t take long to worm their way into Carley’s heart and every day it gets harder to ignore the affection Mrs. Murphy continues to show her. At school, she’s the new kid and for the first time has new clothes and a chance to start fresh. When a friendship forms with an unlikely classmate, Carley listens, but can’t tell her friend the truth about her situation. Will she settle into her new life? Will Carley’s mother ever reach out to her? Read this touching book about facing our fears, making changes and believing in hope to find out!

One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt is a powerful story! I read it in a day because I had to know what happened to Carley. She is a girl that I can imagine being friends with because she has feelings that I can relate to, even though we have different lives. I think the book would be helpful for anyone that has been in foster care or had a foster child live with them because they would be able to relate to the experiences of Carley and the Murphys. It made me think about how hard it can be to make a change when we are scared or worried. We feel like our armor and our edge protects us, but they can also prevent us from feeling loved. I would recommend this book to anyone in 4th grade and up that is ready for an emotional story with characters that will really make them think. Be prepared to cry!

Has anyone else read One for the Murphys? Or have you read another book by Lynda Mullaly Hunt? We’d love to hear your thoughts!

Happy Reading!
~L

51 comments:

  1. Sounds like a good read, and reminds me of my situation as a kid always being dumped on other people. Have a great weekend, hugs, Valerie

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    1. Valerie- It is a really great read. My heart went out to Carley and I think anyone who has been in a similar situation will definitely enjoy the story. ~L

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  2. Sure sounds like one that hits all the right notes. Foster care can be something, my grandmother did it for years.

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    1. Pat- How wonderful that your grandmother did foster care for many years. :) ~L

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  3. Must be a fascinating read. I haven't heard of this author and may well check out her works. A nice review, and thanks for sharing. Greetings!

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    1. Blogoratti- The author has lot of great books. Hope you get to read one of them. :) ~L

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  4. This sounds like a good book. I've never read anything by her before. I think I would want to keep reading, too.

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    1. Janet- It is a really great story. The author does a beautiful job helping us connect to Carley. :) ~L

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  5. Thanks for the review! Love that quote you pulled from the book.

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  6. I haven't read it but I like books that have anything to do with Las Vegas, even if it's just a little bit since I lie there.

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    1. Mary- I know how you feel! I always like to read books that take place in NYC because I live there. :) It's always fun to see if I know the places that are mentioned. This one does mention Las Vegas a good amount. ~L

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  7. Sadly I think we often make big changes at a time when we are scared and/or worried. It sounds an intense and very worthwhile book.

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    1. EC- Very true! This is definitely an intense and very worthwhile book. :) ~L

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  8. We were foster parents for several years, so this one really hits home. No matter how bad it is, the kids still want to go home.

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    1. L. Diane Wolfe- Being foster parents is a wonderful thing. After reading this book I can imagine there are challenges for foster parents and, of course, for foster kids. Home is a big pull. ~L

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  9. I have read this and LOVE it. I've also read Lynda's other book, Fish in a Tree. She is a terrific writer.

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    1. Rosi- So wonderful that you read and loved One for the Murpheys too! I also read Fish and a Tree and enjoyed it. Looking forward to reading more of her books. :) ~L

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  10. I haven't read that one, but I'll keep an eye out for it. It sounds interesting, and educational :)

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    1. Rebecca- I hope you get to read it. It is a great read! :) ~L

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  11. I haven’t read this or actually even heard of it but it sounds good...I probably would have read it in a day, too!

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    1. Patty- It is a great MG book. I think you would really enjoy it. Glad to introduce you to it. :) ~L

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  12. I heard about this book. :) It's so relevant and an important story that needs to be told.

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  13. Nope, haven't heard of Hunt before

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  14. I love books that makes me able to relate to the character and makes me want to be friends with them. :)
    Happy 2018!

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    1. Lux- Me too! Happy 2018 to you, too! :) ~L

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  15. This sounds like such a moving story.

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  16. Thanks so much for this review and introduction to the Author, it does sound a good book.

    All the best Jan

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    1. Jan- You are welcome. I am so glad you enjoyed the review. :) ~L

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  17. Sounds like a very good book!! My mom was in foster child!

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  18. "not in foster child", my mom was a foster child!

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    1. Magic Love Crow- I am so glad there are foster families out there for kids who need them. So important! Since your mom was a foster child, I bet you would enjoy this book. It is great. :) ~L

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  19. Sounds like a wonderful story. The last book I read by Lynda Mullaly Hunt was Fish in a Tree, which I really enjoyed. It's about a sixth grade girl with Dyslexia.

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    1. Brenda- I read Fish and a Tree and enjoyed it too. Hope you get to read One for the Murphys. :) ~L

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  20. I really like how this story sounds. My friend is a foster parent, so I definitely want to share this with her. Hugs...RO

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    1. RO- I hope your friend enjoys this one. :) ~L

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  21. Wow, I read this book it feels like such a long time ago. It really hits you in the heart. I'm so happy you loved it so much! And yeah, everybody better get ready to cry with this one.

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    1. Adriana- I remember reading about this one on your blog. It took me a while to get to it- but it was worth it. Such a great read. :)

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  22. Lovely review sweetie :D I'm glad you liked this book a lot. It do sound pretty amazing :)

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  23. I was an au pair for foster children, but they were at the age when they were still too young to be aware of it... so I can imagine that there are a lot of emotions and questions that come with being a foster child or discovering you are one when you have been with a family for a long time... this book sounds like it could help a lot of families and children with that.

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    1. Olivia-Savannah- I agree with you about the emotions. I definitely think this book can help families and kids going through the same thing as the Murphys and Carley. :) ~L

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