The Puttermans Are in the House

A large Jewish family’s personal relationships are put to the test when a natural disaster forces them into close proximity in this bustling tale by Feldman (Wishing upon the Same Stars). Star pitcher Matty Putterman and his twin sister Sammy, the solitary girl in their amateur league, credit their baseball-diamond domination and their family’s love of the Houston Astros as the only things keeping the twins’ father and their uncle Mike on good terms. Meanwhile, their cousin Becky resents the family’s sports obsession, believing it’s outshining her upcoming bat mitzvah. When Matty walks off the field mid-game without explanation, Sammy worries that their unshakable siblinghood is on the rocks. Soon thereafter, Hurricane Harvey hits Texas, flooding the twins’ home and necessitating that they move in with Uncle Mike, Aunt Deb, and Becky. Past wounds jump to the fore as the family’s clashing personalities and contentious relationships collide. Via the three tweens’ earnest alternating perspectives, which are studded with baseball jargon, Feldman discerningly highlights one family’s struggles navigating loss and learning to accept one another in this uplifting tale. Main characters read as white. Ages 8–12. (Jan.)