Yet her stopping here has a reason and it is part of a story that you will never forget. Ages 10 up.On a June day, a young woman in a summer dress steps off a Chicago-bound bus into a small midwestern town. This charming coming-of-age story acts as a time capsule, offering contemporary readers a glimpse into life in the 1960s while exploring issues young people face in every generation. Beatles song titles are used as chapter headings that thematically relate back to incidents in Trudy's life (including 'We Can Work It Out' and 'From Me to You').

Hood alludes to unfolding events of historical significance, including the Vietnam War, but keeps the focus on Trudy's personal fascinations and concerns. When Trudy learns that the Beatles are playing in Boston in August, she decides the solution to all her problems is meeting Paul McCartney, and formulates a plan to bring the three remaining club members with her. To make matters worse, hardly anyone shows up to Trudy's Beatles fan club meeting only the least popular kids in her grade. Michelle acts aloof and sits with future cheerleaders Becky and Kimberly during lunch, practically ignoring Trudy. A substitute teacher calls Trudy by her hated real name, Gertrude, and the name sticks. School has been great for Trudy and her best friend, Michelle that is until Trudy returns from spring break, when everything changes. In her signature prose, Hood crafts an extraordinary story of growing up, making unexpected connections, and following your dreams even as the world in front of you-and the world at large-is changing too fast.īestselling author Hood (The Obituary Writer) revisits Beatlemania through her narrator Trudy Mixer, a sixth grader growing up in Rhode Island in 1966. So on a hot August day, unknown to their families, Trudy and crew set off on their journey, each of them with soaring hopes for what lies ahead. She is set on seeing them in Boston during their final world tour-and meeting her beloved Paul McCartney. And at home, her workaholic father has become even more distant.ĭetermined to regain her social status and prove herself to her father, Trudy looks toward the biggest thing happening worldwide: the Beatles. Her best friend, Michelle, has decided to become a cheerleader, everyone at school is now calling her Gertrude (her hated real name), and the gem of her middle school career, the Beatles fan club, has dwindled down to only three other members-the least popular kids at school. The Vietnam War rages overseas, the Beatles have catapulted into stardom, and twelve-year-old Rhode Island native Trudy Mixer is not thrilled with life. 'Filled with love, hope, and longing, this is a novel for readers of all ages.' - Holly Goldberg Sloanīestselling author Ann Hood crafts a funny, heartfelt story of a girl growing up in the heart of Beatlemania.

She Loves You by Ann Hood