A Galaxy of Sea Stars

A Galaxy of Sea Stars is full of heart and love. After a summer of so much change, Izzy is nervous about middle school, but at least her two best friends will be with her. But when school starts, even more changes come, from the Afghani family that moves in upstairs, to her absent mother still not coming home, to a strange tension between Izzy and her friends. Izzy's plan to chart the bottom of the harbor seems to be her only constant. Izzy soon learns that change can be painful, but it also helps us to grow and stretch. As she and her new friend Sitara learn to adapt and still hold onto their dreams, Izzy begins to find the courage that she has had inside her all along.This book is full of so many important topics- healthy friendships, trying new things, making our own choices, standing up to bullying and hate, speaking out, compassion and acceptance of immigrants and refugees, kindness, family relationships. Beautifully written and perfect for middle grade readers. I am excited to add this book to my class library!

A Galaxy of Sea Stars is the second book written by the amazing Jeanne Zulick Ferruolo. This is a heartfelt story about family, devotion and the hard choices people sometimes face in the name of friendship.At a time when it seems like everything is shifting in her small town of Seaside, Rhode Island, all eleven-year-old Izzy wants is for things to stay the same just as they always have. However, Izzy is growing up & sometimes changes and even challenges come when you start to grow up.She wants her dad to start acting like he did before he was deployed to Afghanistan. Izzy’s Dad came home from the war with injuries & PTSD; which makes her Dad have mood swings sometimes. Because of her Dad’s new injuries he had to sell his fishing boat (the Isabella Rose) & the family’s home; a home where Izzy grew up and memories are everywhere. Her Dad then buys the local run down marina, Oceanside Pond Marina.Soon Izzy, her Dad & her grandma, Starenka, move into the second floor apartment above the bait shop. Izzy’s Dad hopes to renovate the marina and make it beautiful again.Izzy wants her mom to move back to the marina where they now live & not stay on Block Island where her Mom spent the summer working in her families’ restaurant: Loretta’s Kitchen.Izzy thinks her Mom will be home by the night before school starts, because her Mom had always made her a special back to school waffle breakfast. Sadly, her Mom doesn’t come home as planned.But the one thing Izzy wants most of all, is for her best friends – Piper and Zelda (known as the Sea Stars) – to stay best friends as they begin sixth grade in a new school. With a new school to navigate & new classes, Izzy is determined to keep the Sea Stars together. But, as the days progress this becomes much more challenging.They've all managed to get into the same homeroom, where they will do the school video announcements, but soon things start to feel off to Izzy, who really doesn’t like speaking in front of the camera.More changes come when Izzy’s father invites his former Army interpreter (who was also a doctor) from Afghanistan & his whole family, which includes eleven-year-old Sitara, to move into the upstairs apartment at the marina. The family had to leave Afghanistan, because they were being threatened.After Izzy’s father invites Sitara’s family to move in, Izzy slowly becomes more anxious. Why isn’t her mother moving back home & what will the Sea Stars say about Sitara, who is the same age and isn’t scared of standing out or explaining her beliefs?Izzy doesn’t know what to make of Sitara, who is bursting with confidence, wears a hijab & refuses to eat cafeteria food. What Izzy does know is that the constant company of Sitara has disrupted the normal easy flow of the Sea Stars.Izzy soon starts spending more time with Sitara & finds out they actually have a lot in common and can make good friends. In her new friend, Sitara, Izzy finds someone who is courageous, daring and isn’t afraid to use her voice & speak up for herself. As she gets to know Sitara better, Izzy can’t help but admire Sitara’s pride in her Muslim faith & the confidence she has when facing new things. Little by little, Izzy begins to realize there exists a world much larger than her safe but shielded harbor in Seaside.Sitara wears her hijab to school and is forthright about it, even mentioning on the school announcements that if anyone has questions, she would rather be asked them to her face. This doesn't stop some of the other students from giving her a hard time about it. When this includes Zelda, Izzy is distraught that her best friend can be so mean.With her father's recent health difficulties, the absence of her mother & a rapidly changing friendship with the Sea Stars, Izzy becomes stressed, but soon learns that a person’s courage should always be bigger than their fear.The one constant thing that always stays the same in Izzy’s new life is her mapping of Oceanside Pond with her faithful dog, Flotsam, by her side. When Izzy moved into the new apartment at the marina, she found a book written by the first female scientist (Marie Tharp) who mapped the ocean floor. It was this book, which Izzy devoured quickly, to make her own map of Oceanside Pond.As the reader draws closer to the end of Izzy’s story, they find her in a tough situation. A situation that will cause Izzy to become braver than her fears, leave her comfort zone, and maybe loose the Sea Stars forever.To find out what happens with Izzy, Sitara and the Sea Stars; go out and pick up a copy of this beautiful heartfelt story today.

I recently got to see this author speak at a book event about the background and research that went into A GALAXY OF SEA STARS. At this event I also got to meet and hear from some of the young women refugees who helped develop the character Sitara and acted as cultural consultants in the creation of the story. Wow! This book is such a wonderful way to share their powerful and courageous stories with kids. I would recommend this book to readers (and book clubs!) of any age. Izzy's and Sitara's story is relevant and timely and an important starting point for all of us to remember to just be kind because we don't know what other people are going through. There are some tough scenes in this book - but sadly, they are all too real. This book is a great reminder that we all need to speak up for each other. A GALAXY OF SEA STARS is a powerful story and great read! I highly recommend it!

Everything in 11 year old Izzy world seems to be changing...her father has recently come home from serving in the Army in Afghanistan her mother has moved to Bock Island, and Izzy and her friends (the call themselves the Sea Stars) are entering sixth grade at a new regional middle school. Izzy resist change, so when 11-year old Sitara and her family (refugees from Afghanistan) move into the apartment upstairs from where Izzy, her dad and grandmother live at the marina, Izzy is reluctant to welcome her. But from Sitara, Izzy learns about a new kind of courage. There are so many strong women characters in this story. My girls loved and I loved reading about Maria Tharp and oceanographer who mapped the ocean floor. The characters are well drawn and my girls felt as if they knew each one of them. There were some tough scenes in the story-but they were very realistic and gave us a lot to talk about. This was a terrific read about what it means to be a true friend and standing up for what is right, and finding your voice. I would highly recommend it.