Rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars

Age Recommended: 9 and up

Note: This book is an Advance Reader Copy courtesy of NetGalley.

Half A Chance is an amazing book that highlights the difficulties one faces when moving to a new place – new schools, new friends, new challenges.

Cynthia Lord has written a very captivating story where I can imagine myself being part of the story. This book is now one of my favorites.

This story is about Lucy, a middle-schooler, who keeps having to move to new places once her photographer dad gets tired of taking pictures of where they live. Lucy has just moved to a lakeside house in New Hampshire. 

Lucy has always wanted to take photos that will make her dad proud, but since her dad is a professional photographer, she is not very confident of her own picture taking abilities.

Lucy’s dad is now judging a kids photography contest and Lucy wants to enter. Lucy becomes friends with the neighbor’s kid, Nate, and he helps her take pictures for her entry into the contest. However, since her dad is a judge, people might call her dad biased if she ends up winning the competition, so Lucy decides to enter her photos using Nate’s name.

Lucy takes a photo capturing the true emotions of Nate’s grandmother and she chooses to use that picture in the contest without Nate’s permission. This is where things start to get rocky between them.

Will Lucy be able to prove to her dad that she is a good photographer, while still keeping her friendship with Nate?