Tig
By: Heather Smith
Genre: Middle Grade
Number of Pages: 160
Published: September 3, 2024
Publisher: Tundra Books
Dates Read: September 2, 2024
Format: ARC / eBook

Trigger Warnings: Child abandonment, alcoholic parent, abuse

After months of living without electricity or parents, Tig and Peter are forced to move in with their Uncle Scott and his partner, Manny. The transition from on your own, to picture perfect is rough. Tig, along with Peter’s support, decides to make it messy, with daily arguments and stubbornness, and plans to become a competitive cheese racer.

This is a heartbreaking, and heartwarming, middle grade novel that I was not expecting to make me cry, but here we are. Tig is one of those characters I will think about for a long time (if not forever). I also think I will be rereading this at some point as well for reasons you may understand after reading it.

Tig is a heavy book, but still written well for middle grade readers. Tig herself is going through a lot of trauma and you’re seeing this new environment through her eyes as she goes through it and sometimes even processes/revisits trauma she’d experienced before. She is really blessed with supportive and empathetic adults like her Uncle Scott and Manny.

This novel is a short, but terrific read. Tig will grab your heartstrings and race you down the hill with them.

*Thank you Tundra Books and NetGalley for an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review