When Mika starts fifth grade at the middle school, her neat life gets messy. And math class is the most confusing of all, especially when her teacher Mr. Vann assigns a journal... in Math? 

 

But when her mom gets an unexpected diagnosis, Mika realizes there are no easy answers. And maybe, with some help from friends, family, and one unique teacher, a math journal can help her work out her problems, and not just the math ones. 

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"Swender paints a laudable realistic picture... in the end readers will be assured that, whatever Mom's outcome, Mika will have whatever she needs to get through." 

-Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books * Recommended

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"Swender fills Mika's journey with quiet hope and gradual adjustments... A quiet but creative story about accepting change and uncertainty." -Booklist

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"What this book did so masterfully, and what the world needs so much more of, is show the immeasurable importance of teachers in a child's life." -Silver Button Books