Pictures of Hollis Woods

‘Pictures of Hollis Woods’ is an Newbery Honor award winning book written by Patricia Reilly Gif. It’s about a girl who has spent her whole life traveling through foster homes and causing trouble. Hollis doesn’t want a foster family, she wants a real family. She ends up finding a family who accepts her and she is finally happy. She ends up messing up with this family too. The last lady is someone who is equally crazy as her and Hollis takes care of her because she can’t lose another family. Read this story to find out how Hollis changes and what she will do for the ones she loves. The author wanted this story to tell that there is always someone who will love you and shows what you will do to keep the ones you love safe.

Hollis woods is the main character of the story. She is a witty, ignorant, independent little girl that does not care for the foster families that don’t care for her. She has always had an amazing talent at drawing and art.  The chapters give us flashbacks of her life through the pictures she has drawn. Hollis has had two families she has loved. She proves that she will do anything for them. The first family she stumbled upon on accident in the midst of her running away from a foster home. It all started with a game of checkers and they took her in after that. Hollis had never felt so at home, until one day there was a terrible accident and she has to leave them. She is then sent off to live with an old eccentric lady by the name of Josie and her feisty old cat. Josie is a little forgetful, a little too forgetful. This concerns the foster care agency so they plan on taking Hollis away from Josie. The two are now each other’s best friends and family, they need to escape so they can’t take hollis. Read the story to find out how Hollis’s plan will work and what amazing things happen toward the end of the story. It’s very shocking and you will have mixed emotions!

This was a great story, but it was an easy read. I think it could have had more plot twists but it was still good enough to keep me fascinated and wondering what will happen next. I would recommend it to people! It wasn’t the best but it was still good maybe a 7-10. If you are interested in realistic stories I would suggest this, it is just a normal sad story.

Book Review by Allie K.