The 2026 Newbery Medal Winner, All the Blues in the Sky, is bittersweet. It takes the reader on the journey through grief with thirteen-year-old Sage, whose best friend was killed by a drunk driver. Written in verse, its judicious use of white space gives the reader time to absorb the emotions of the protagonist and to reflect. This novel so skillfully articulates the incongruency of life stopping and yet going on, of unrelenting sadness and bursts of unexpected happiness. It is both heavy and light. Utterly focused on the themes of death, grieving, unfairness, guilt, and everything that comes with the death of someone, there are no side trips in the narrative. This book could be helpful to someone who is grieving or who knows someone who is grieving. Authentic, deep, and personal straight from the heart of the author to the reader, this is a good discussion or book club read.

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language: None

Violence/Gore: Report that a family member died from cancer; report that a family member died from old age; report that a family member was shot and killed by the police, brief account; report that a friend was killed when hit by a drunk driver — this was referred to several times in the book, with mention of broken bones, body flying, etc.

Sex/Nudity: Friends tease a girl about a boy; reference to day dreaming about possible future boyfriends; boy tells a girl he likes her; boy and a girl kiss.

Mature Subject Matter:

Death of family members and other loved ones, grief, terminal illness.

Alcohol/Drug Use:

Report that a drunk driver hit someone and killed them.