A visit to New York City is exactly what Amara wanted for her 12th birthday. She’s seeing Harlem, where her dad grew up; staying with Grandpa Earl; and getting to know her cousins, who are showing her around—although not always willingly. Her mom, eight months pregnant and unable to make the trip from their home in Beaverton, Oregon, has also charged Amara with getting Grandpa Earl and Amara’s dad talking—there’s been a rift between them for 12 years. The discovery that her dad, working his dream job for Nike, was a bookish kid like Amara, and used to write and perform poetry, while Grandpa Earl, a former basketball coach, pushed him to be more athletic, makes Amara think about her own relationship with her mom—it sometimes feels like they have so little in common. Seeing the same is true of her dad and grandpa is both unsettling and reassuring, especially after the distance between the two finally begins to close. As African American Amara explores both family history and the history of Harlem—a vibrantly realized setting in the novel—she discovers a lasting legacy of love. (Ages 9–12)

From Newbery Honor- and Coretta Scott King Author Award-winning, New York Times bestselling author Renée Watson comes a heartwarming and inspiring novel for middle schoolers about finding deep roots and exploring the past, the present, and the places that make us who we are.

All Amara wants for her birthday is to visit her father's family in New York City-Harlem, to be exact. She can't wait to finally meet her Grandpa Earl and cousins in person, and to stay in the brownstone where her father grew up. Maybe this will help her understand her family-and herself-in new way. But New York City is not exactly what Amara thought it would be. It's crowded, with confusing subways, suffocating sidewalks, and her father is too busy with work to spend time with her and too angry to spend time with Grandpa Earl. As she explores, asks questions, and learns more and more about Harlem and about her father and his family history, she realizes how, in some ways more than others, she connects with him, her home, and her family.

Acclaim for Piecing Me Together
Newbery Honor Book
Coretta Scott King Author Award
Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Young Adult Finalist
A New York Public Library Best Book for Teens
A Chicago Public Library Best Book, Teen Fiction
An ALA Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults
An NPR Best Book
A Kirkus Reviews' Best Teen Book
A Refinery29 Best Book