Reviewing the novel in
School Library Journal, Therese Bigelow felt that the "storyline is weakened by too many underdeveloped subplots." Diane Roback, however, writing for
Publishers Weekly, had praise for Kassem's debut novel, calling
Listen for Rachel an "absorbing, old-fashioned romance."
A Novelist for the Middle Grades
"With no apologies, I am a writer for young people," Kassem once remarked. "The laughter and tears associated with growing up have always fascinated me. [Fellow children's author] Jane Yolen described our profession best when she said, 'An author's real job is to tell a whopping good tale.' Telling a whopping good tale in my mystery, humorous, historical, and contemporary novels is my primary goal." With Middle School Blues Kassem turned from historical romance to contemporary issues inspired by problems her own children encountered while growing up. Cindy, who is starting the seventh grade, finds difficulty transitioning from primary school to middle school; she misses old friends, finds changing classrooms a challenge, and generally feels out of place. She begins to record these feelings in a notebook, creating rules to live by. Over the course of time, Cindy begins to adjust to her new environment, makes new friends, wins a creative writing contest, and even has a first kiss.
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