Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

When 13-year-old Abby rescues a litter of seven puppies, her only focus is on keeping them safe and sound. Safety is a precious resource for Abby and her mother, living in a loveless home with Abby’s abusive and belittling father. Abby rescued the puppies to help the local animal shelter and keeps them in an abandoned cabin nearby. Between secret trips to the cabin, scraping money together to keep the dogs fed, and finding enough time for walks and cleaning, Abby realizes she’s in over her head. When the abandoned cabin turns out not to be abandoned, after all, she finds an unlikely ally in Elliot, a recent widower. Blending Abby’s coming-of-age story, her mother’s crumbling marriage, and Elliot’s grief, Seven Perfect Things is multilayered and heartwarming. Hyde doesn’t shy away from the immense frustrations facing a family under financial, emotional, and verbal constraints. Fans of Mary Alice Monroe’s The Summer Guests (2019), Annie England Noblin’s Sit! Stay! Speak! (2015), and Hyde’s previous work will understand Abby’s realization that escaping isn’t always a choice—sometimes, it’s an imperative.