Last week, I read The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman by Gennifer Choldenko. This realistic fiction novel is about Hank Hooperman, an eleven-year-old boy whose mom often leaves him in charge of his three-year-old sister, Boo. Hank hates making mistakes, but when his mom doesn't come back after several days and the apartment manager lets them know they're being evicted the next morning, he decides to take a bus with Boo to find Lou Ann Adler, the woman listed as an emergency contact on his field trip form. Although Hank finds it hard adjusting to Lou Ann's rules at first, Boo thrives while they're living with her. Hank is also anxious about what will happen if Lou Ann decides she doesn't want them anymore, but their time with Lou Ann goes from days to weeks and Hank begins making friends and getting involved at his new school and connects with Lou Ann's neighbor, Ray. Hank desperately misses his mom, so he tries to find her with Ray's help. His search isn't initially successful, but soon he has a breakthrough and must decide if living with his mom is the right thing or a huge mistake for himself and Boo.
This novel deals with some tough stuff, like child neglect, but I enjoyed reading it. I thought Hank's relationship with Boo was adorable and felt so bad that they have a mom who just can't keep it together. They definitely deserved a better life, but I wasn't sure if it would be with their mom, Lou Ann, or someone else. As I read the story and Ray became like a father figure to Hank, I began to realize that he might be a good option for them, but things got pretty tense and I definitely wasn't positive where Hank and Boo would find a home or if they would even be able to stay together. I also liked Hank's new friends, especially Ana Lopez because I thought their crushes on each other were sweet. On the other hand, I found Lou Ann to be a difficult woman to like because of her skepticism about Hank even though she was what Boo needed at the time, helping her learn to go to the bathroom consistently and write her name. Besides that, I thought it was cool that Hank discovered that he was good at basketball and wanted to try out for the team. I hoped that would work out for him because it was a way he could just be a kid after all he's been through. The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman is an excellent story about what it's like to experience neglect, homelessness, and the foster care system as a kid, and I would recommend it to anyone, especially those who are having a rough time at home to let them know that they're not alone.
