Advanced
Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.
Title details for Lalo Lespérance Never Forgot by Phillippe Diederich - Available

Lalo Lespérance Never Forgot

by Phillippe Diederich
Adan Rocha
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available
A moving middle-grade mystery about a boy dealing with long-repressed memories of his father as he learns about his Mexican and Haitian heritage while spying on a mysterious stranger during the first weeks of COVID lockdown.
Lalo Lesperance lives with his older brother and Mexican American mother in a low-income apartment building in Fort Myers. They moved there from a subdivision after the family lost Lalo’s Haitian American father. At school, Lalo is known as the boy who can’t remember anything and needs special help in all his classes. But when the first COVID lockdown hits, he finds himself in a friendship of convenience with Vivi, a Mexican American kid his age who gets perfect grades and who never gave him a second thought when they were in school. Vivi’s abuela watches the kids while their mothers work long shifts as nurses at a clinic slammed by COVID. As Lalo navigates his much smaller pandemic world, he discovers his apartment building has its own mysteries, like a sinister stranger in an old RV and a storage closet full of junk, including an old radio that just might hold the key to remembering why Lalo’s family moved to the apartment and what happened to his father.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    September 12, 2023

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780593744383
      • File size: 161086 KB
      • Duration: 05:35:35

  • Languages

    • English

  • Levels

    • Lexile® Measure: 600
    • Text Difficulty: 2-3

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      September 25, 2023
      An 11-year-old endeavors to build a machine to recover his lost memories in this thoughtful novel by Diederich (Diamond Park), set at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. Lalo Lespérance has always had trouble remembering things, including details about his deceased father. When lockdowns begin, he’s stuck in his Fort Myers apartment complex with his older brother and forced to attend online school with neighbor kid Vivi. He spends his free time tinkering with his brother’s broken PlayStation, hoping to turn it into a memory machine and teams up with Vivi to investigate a mysterious motor home parked outside their building that’s rumored to kidnap children. His discovery of an old radio that seemingly helps him remember his past might be the answer to his woes—or the beginning of a whole new set of problems. Subplots starring neighbors and challenges within his apartment block provide insightful looks into one community’s experience navigating the pandemic. In spare, resonant prose, Diederich dives into the complexities of family, identity, and memory through Lalo, who feels it’s impossible to define who he is when he can’t remember the events—and people—that shaped him. Lalo is Mexican and Haitian American; the supporting cast is racially diverse. Ages 10–up.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:600
  • Text Difficulty:2-3

Loading