Sunday, February 21, 2021

The Rubber Band

About the Book

Book: The Rubber Band

Author: Christy Hoss

Genre: Middle Grade

Release date: July 31, 2020

CMYK300TheRubberband (1) (2) THE RUBBER BAND What do Roadkill Rocky, Bossy Becca, and Pinhead Eddie have in common? Nothing. A rag-tag bunch of elementary school kids come together to form a rock and roll band and enter the Sun Valley talent contest. Will they be strong enough to overcome prejudice and see the dream of winning through, or will an unforeseen medical emergency break the bond of the band?

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About the Author

IMG_0898-Edit (1) Christy caught the writing bug in second grade after winning a prize for a five-page story about her dog, Noodles. Mrs. Olson told her she was destined to be a writer and that dream never left her thoughts. After teaching elementary school for fifteen years, Christy fulfilled her childhood dream with her debut novel, The Rubber Band. She substitute teaches to support her writing career, deriving writing inspiration from the students and situations she encounters.

At age twenty-five, she was diagnosed with type-one diabetes but refuses to let it limit her. Her diabetic alert dog, Aiden, has saved her life uncountable times and will appear in future installments of The Rubber Band. Christy lives by this equation: Living + diabetes = LIVE-abetes.

Christy is a freelance editor and writes children’s Bible stories for Focus on the Family ClubHouse magazine and has written articles for Guideposts. She is a featured speaker for conferences, retreats and special events.

Christy lives in Northern California with Kevin, the love of her life. They have three grown children.

More from Christy

Noodles is the reason I am a writer. Noodles was my childhood dog’s name. I loved her oodles and oodles. She was a dachshund, not a poodle. I often drew her in my doodles. (Can you tell I’m an elementary school teacher?) A few short years ago, when I was in second grade, I entered a class writing contest. My story was five sentences long but won first place. The teacher told me I was destined to be a writer. That encouragement never left me. I grew up in the small town of Thief River Falls, Minnesota, and always loved writing in school, especially fiction. I wrote stories for my friends and for myself to create situations I could only dream of. As an adult, I moved to California, determined to live for God. He led me back to college where I fell in love with writing again. I won a state-wide award for my feature article in the JC’s newspaper, confirming my heart’s desire. Fast forward through marriage, kids, and a teaching job—my friends begged me to write about a recurring night dream I had, which was like watching the ending of a suspense thriller movie. Through writing conferences, critique groups and late nights, I wrote Palms of Death by starting at the end and working my way backwards. After rewriting it several times, I self-published it in 2018. At my first major writers’ conference, the Lord undeniably called me to write. So, the real reason I write is not because of Noodles, but because I want to always be a faithful follower of Jesus Christ and wholeheartedly follow His direction. That’s my story, just a bit of the whole kit and caboodle.

MY REVIEW

This is a great story that teaches about working together and sharing a dream. The characters are each unique and very easy to relate to. From the bossy girl to the bully we see diversity in this story. I felt like I was back in middle school where everyone wanted to fit in. This age group is finding their way as they mature and start to find their confidence. I loved how the group of kids got together to form a band.

This would be a great book to have in a school library as kids learn about responsibility and treating each other with respect. It is funny at times when the band gets together to practice for the talent show. I liked the song they chose to play and it sure brought back memories for me. The author does a great job of highlighting how important it is to never give up on your dream. I applaud the author for demonstrating how easy it can be to judge others.

School is hard at times and rumors are always swirling around. The book shows that you need to get to know each other and not believe what others say. In the group is a kid that everyone at school is scared of. When they ask him to join the band they see that he is really nice and polite. Sometimes we put up a front so we don’t get hurt and in this case I’m glad they gave him a chance.

There is a part at the end of the book that was very informative and teaches about diabetes. It is surprising how many children are diagnosed or have this illness. The author does an excellent job of explaining the steps to treat the illness and show that it can be manageable. It is a good story that shares the ups and downs of a group of middle schoolers and a dream they come together to achieve. Along the way they make friends and form a bond that is valuable to each of them.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.