Everything Together

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy. I did not read the prequel, but you do not really need to in order to understand this book. There is a lot of diversity and tolerance in this book. I wanted to read this book to see how the Muslim and refugee characters are viewed. This isn't something I would get for our school library, with the LGBTQ content and occasional "bad" word. I did appreciate the message that even while not all Christians or Muslims agree with LGBTQ, treat people with respect, because if people do not practice your religion, why expect them to follow your Holy Book, too? It's not a particularly funny or adventurous story, and but the themes of friendship, interpersonal relationships, growing up, identity, etc. really shine through. There is no room for hate against family, queer, refugees, or people from different religions.

This is an interesting book encouraging equality, diversity and tolerance to others. It is the second book in a series, I haven't read the first book but that did not matter.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my ARC.

A sweet queer-themed middle-grade novel about 13-year-old Jeremiah navigating the impending wedding of his father and the father's boyfriend. The wide and diverse cast of characters was great, but at one point it also seemed that the author was trying to shove in too many side plots, leaving some threads unravelled in the end. For example, the friendship between Jeremiah and Sage and their drifting apart was never really addressed fully.
This could be a great book to get young children thinking about diversity and inclusion in their immediate circles. At one level I felt that the book was somewhat didactic; at another, I felt that these kinds of books are so desperately needed.
(Review copy from NetGalley)

In this series, every summer Jeremiah has to deal with changes to his life, expectations, and the boundaries of his knowledge and world. That's exactly what it means to be an adolescent, and this series handles that so well. The first book dealt with divorce, remarriage, and LGBTQIA issues. To those this book adds dealing with changing friendships, learning about other cultures, and refugees and immigration. Everything is handled beautifully and with such a great relevance for the target age group.

I love all the rep in this! It’s ethnically diverse and inclusive of LGBT, which is enough to make me approve of this for children. it’s super important that kids are able to read these stories :)

I’m not the target audience for this book, so while I’m not going to rate it as I normally would book, I’ll rate it a bit higher.

This is a great book for children to read and be exposed to diversity. Working in a grade school I would definitely recommend this book to teachers and parents of kids who meet the appropriate reading level.

I enjoy the theme of these books. I find them to be well written for the age group and not trying to hard to get main points across, like books sometimes do at this level. I enjoy the LGBTQ+ aspect but even more so, that the book focuses on Jeremiah and his life with his family and friends having supporting roles, like adolescents’ lives truly are. I look forward to more books
In this series.

I wish I had friends with young kids, I'd be buying them this book, and the first in the series, [book:Second Dad Summer|40880154], as well- they are both such wonderful stories!

I had no idea there was going to be a sequel to Second Dad Summer so it was a happy surprise when I saw Everything Together up on NetGalley! Like SDS, Everything Together was entertaining, heart-warming, and full of life lessons.
Jeremiah is back with his dad and Michael for another summer, and boy how things have changed. Instead of spending the summer with his best friend Sage like he hoped, he finds himself a little lost. Sage has a new bff she's busy with, which leaves Jeremiah floundering. As much as he doesn't mind helping Michael, there's only so much wedding prep a 13yo boy can handle. Left to his own devices he ends up making a new friend, and finding something that gives his summer purpose. I really enjoyed seeing Jeremiah really grow and expand his horizons over the course of the summer.

I loved how Benjamin Klas hits on relevant topics in such a way that they're understandable for the target demographic. I liked that there was such a diverse cast of characters, which I think could lead to some great dialogue for young readers. There are definitely a lot of teaching moments in this book, without being overly preachy or in your face, and I felt like I was leaning things right along with Jeremiah.

Sap that I am, there might have been a few tears shed as the summer came to a close.

It's the next summer after the events of Second Dad Summer and Jer is excited for all of the fun that he is going to have until he learns that his best friend from the previous summer has a new best friend...

A really well-written, beautiful story that dives straight back into the would of Second Dad Summer. I really enjoyed the addition of Muslim characters to the story as well as watching Jer meet some amazing refugees and learn from them.

Fingers crossed there will be more books in this series.

I especially liked that this book had 2 dads. There are more books like this that are coming, but it was refreshing. I liked the way it was presented to kids and it was very age approrpriate. I liked it and hope to see more like it in the future.

This was hilarious and adorable all at the same time. I found myself rooting for these characters and loved the representation it brought to the genre. Thank you for the e-arc!

E ARC provided by Netgalley

Jeremiah is back in Minneapolis to spend the summer with his dad and his fiance, Michael, as they are planning their wedding for August. Michael, who works in a grocery store and is very unique, is creating a lot of Pinterest worthy crafts for the wedding, in teal and cocoa, and Jeremiah frequently gets roped into helping. While he's excited to be back to hang out with his friend Sage, he is a bit rebuffed to find that she has a new best friend, Asha. Jeremiah doesn't like to share his friends, so the two don't spend quite as much time bike riding. There's still a bit of it, and Jeremiah has grown enough that he needs a new bike, and his dad treats him to a really nice one. With time on his hands, he agrees to work at the Bridge, where Sage's one mother works, to help immigrants settle in the US. He really enjoys learning about other cultures and helping out. He also makes a friend in Asha's twin brother, Asad, and the two hang out, biking around and going to Asad's father's coffee shop, Bulshada. There is a racial incident when the Bridge community garden is destroyed, but the neighborhood rallies around. As the wedding approaches, Michael gets more and more nervous, and bad weather threatens some of the plans for the outdoor wedding. While the summer wasn't exactly the same as the one before, Jeremiah still has a good time visiting his father.
Strengths: There have got to be a lot of children from divorced families who spend summers with a noncustodial parent, and who have to make friends and find things to do. Jeremiah's Minneapolis neighborhood is a very fun, active, and inclusive place. Last summer, in Second Dad Summer, he was working with the garden, so it's good to mix things up with him working at the Bridge. His friendship with Sage is understandable, and it's nice to see him befriend Asad, and also think through what effective charity is like. This is a quick read that will appeal to elementary readers who want to read about older characters with more freedom, or to middle school students who are interested in summer stories.
Weaknesses: What kind of heathen ModPodges crocheted doilies to balloons to make lanterns. I...feel...faint... (I also own a LOT of hand crocheted doilies, and yes, put them under things on wooden furniture. I'm pretty sure my female ancestors would actively haunt me if I ModPodged them to anything.)
What I really think: This is a great book showing vibrant LGBTQIA+ communities and includes themes of racial justice as well without becoming overly political, which will add to the longevity of the book.

“𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆, 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓.”

Second Dad Summer was my very first NetGalley approval and ARC, and I loved it. When I saw that a sequel called Everything Together was ready to be requested, I jumped at the opportunity.

When Jeremiah spends the summer in Minneapolis with his Dad, and his Dad’s fiancé, Michael, everything feels different. There’s the mad dash to prepare for the August wedding, his best friend, Sage, now spends all her time with a new girl, and he doesn’t know where he fits in. As summer goes on, Jeremiah finds community in new places he never expected.

Much like Second Dad Summer, I loved this book. It was great spending time again with characters that I already knew; Benjamin Klaus expertly weaved new characters in and quickly they became new favourites. This book (and hopefully series) continues to spend time looking at the beauty in differences, and how that beauty enriches our lives. Not only acting as a great middle school read about the LGBTQ+ community, it also touches on immigration and different cultures, which fits wonderfully with my Grade 6 Social Studies curriculum. It is the story of connection, with family, chosen family, and friend, along with the surprises life can give us when we lean into relationships and get to know people on a deeper level.

I will be adding this book to my classroom, and will strongly recommend both Second Dad Summer and Everything Together to my students. Benjamin Klaus, I hope that you continue to write this series; I’m not done spending time with Jeremiah, his family, friends, and Minneapolis! Thank you to NetGalley, One Elm Books, and Red Chair Press for the ARC.

“𝑰𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆’𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆, 𝒊𝒕’𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒕 𝒖𝒔𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒅.”

This book was a super fun read! You could probably read this one without reading the first book and be fine, but I did read the first one and enjoyed having the backstory. This is a great display of queer love for younger folks.

I had no idea there was going to be a sequel to Second Dad Summer so it was a happy surprise when the publisher reached out to me to read this book. I am so glad I said yes, because much like Second Dad Summer, I LOVED this book. It was great spending time again with characters that I already knew. This book is a really well-written, beautiful story that dives straight back into the would of Second Dad Summer. I really enjoyed the addition of Muslim characters to the story as well as watching Jer meet some amazing refugees and learn from them. Ultimately, this book is about much more than a second summer in Minneapolis. This is a must read for me. This is such a great book showing vibrant LGBTQIA+ communities that includes themes of racial justice without becoming overly political.

Everything Together is a book about friendship. I know that the title says it is about a wedding, but the event is a minor player in the tale. Benjamin Klas focuses on Jeremiah and how he fits into everyone’s space now that they have moved on without him. His father is getting married and is living with his fiance, therefore the fiance is starting to act more as a step-father than as a friend. His best friend from previous visits now has a new friend with all of the same interests who lives there full-time. Jeremiah expected to just pick up where he left off last summer and now he is left floundering.

He slowly starts to find his way through a great opportunity involving ESL classes. The stories and people that he meets have an impact on him which help him grow. Then there are additional people who come along that expand his horizons. Never mind, all of the help he gives for the wedding.

The story can be a little slow at times. The overall message is great. I like the diversity and the real-world storylines. Everything Together shows kids that they can do more than just stay in the house glued to their phones.