Out of Order

I think that many people could relate to this book, including me. All the characters were different, which I thought made the story more interesting. Betty Hicks did a good job tieing in all of the characters into one story plot.

For years, Lily was the oldest in her family; then, as soon as her mom married Frank and their two families blended together, Lily became a middle child. "Out of Order" looks at what it means to suddenly have a whole new family and a new place in the birth order. In this book, 4 kids, ages 9 to 15, have to learn how to adjust in order to get along and still keep their personalities (and their sanity!). The chapters alternate the point of view of the kids, so readers have a lot more insight into motivations and history than the characters themselves. This is a fun, fairly realistic portrait of a common situation in many families today. A quick read (chapters are very short) for grades 4-6.