Maddie Finds Her Place

In Sutton’s illustrated children’s book, an unhoused child finds new hope with a foster parent.

Maddie is a young girl facing tough challenges far beyond her years. Her parents and other relatives are either unable or unwilling to take care of her, so she bounces from home to home. “So, Maddie went from here to there, TRYING TO FIND HER SPACE, / It felt a little to Maddie like she was always in a race.” Humans fail her, so Maddie lives outside—in the trees with the birds (who can’t give her love) and in a cave with a bear (who doesn’t understand personal hygiene). At school, Maddie envies her classmates whose parents provide them with love and care, so she “did the best she could to love herself some more, / And told herself that one day, love would walk right through her door.” Fortunately, a woman appears at the school who offers to take care of her. Although the woman admits she can’t replace Maddie’s parents, she believes that she and the girl can learn and grow together. Maddie teaches her new caretaker how to braid her hair, while the woman teaches Maddie how to bake a cake and provides space and a home for the youngster’s sometimes-extreme moods. Maddie may not have expected to find a place to live this way, but now her dream has come true. In this follow-up to You Can Do Hard Things (2024), Sutton presents a touching story of a child struggling to settle down and deal with situations outside her control. Overall, its subject matter is generally underrepresented in children’s literature, especially regarding Maddie’s unhoused status. However, Sutton’s lilting, rhyming couplets undermine the gravity of the situation, and the foster mother’s appearance in the story is abrupt, raising questions about her legal right to help Maddie—a child who seemingly lives outside of the foster-care system. Still, Mueller’s illustrations, which feature defined lines and bold teals, greens, and grays, effectively emphasize Maddie’s sadness and optimism, by turns.

A meaningful story that’s hampered by an underdeveloped narrative.