The extraordinary -- and extraordinarily powerful -- follow-up to
Hey, Kiddo.
When Jarrett J. Krosoczka was in high school, he was part of a program
that sent students to be counselors at a camp for seriously ill kids and
their families. Going into it, Jarrett was worried: Wouldn't it be
depressing, to be around kids facing such a serious struggle? Wouldn't
it be grim?
But instead of the shadow of death, Jarrett found something else at Camp
Sunshine: the hope and determination that gets people through the most
troubled of times. Not only was he subject to some of the usual rituals
that come with being a camp counselor (wilderness challenges, spooky
campfire stories, an extremely stinky mascot costume), but he also got a
chance to meet some extraordinary kids facing extraordinary
circumstances. He learned about the captivity of illness, for sure but
he also learned about the freedom a safe space can bring.
Now, in his follow-up to the National Book Award finalist Hey, Kiddo,
Jarrett brings readers back to Camp Sunshine so we can meet the campers
and fellow counselors who changed the course of his life.