Orbiting Jupiter Paperback – May 2, 2017

Gary D. Schmidt is able to capture the nuances of life so perfectly in just a few words. In Orbiting Jupiter he shares the heartbreak, the joys, and the personalities of humanity. More than anything, I read his books because they make me feel alive. For a brief time the successes, or setbacks, of Jack and his foster brother Joseph-- are mine.In every one of his books we find characters that we can relate to. Characters we despise and characters that are the heroes of this crazy world. Jack, even though he's only in the 6th grade, is someone I can look up to as he tries his best to do what he feels to be right and to unconditionally provide the support and "have Joseph's back" as Joseph tries to overcome the problems that life has beset him with and find his (Joseph's) daughter-- Jupiter.This book has both sad and happy moments, and while the overall tone might be considered by many to be dark I think the challenge is to find the happy things-- come what may.I would highly recommend this book to almost anyone. It's content, although certainty not graphic, alludes to very real problems that might be disturbing to very young readers (e.g., younger than 12) but I definitely think that it's worth the time it takes to read/listen to it.I don't want to leave any spoilers so this review is pretty much done.

I have read a lot of books. Some really good ones. This book. I read it in the course of 2 or 3 hours at work because it is a very small novel. This stupid book made me cry at work. This is one of the best books I have ever read. It is by far my favorite book that I have ever read. The writing style is so unique and easy to binge, but the plot and the emotions from just a couple characters gave so much emotion. I felt so much melancholy and sadness, but also so satisfied. Read. This. Book!

A beautiful story. Heart wrenching. I read this with my 14 yr old and 9 yr old. It was a little mature for the younger one but overall the story was so good I would read this to them again. It led to good discussion. And lots of tears from all of us. We read Okay for Now prior to this book and loved the cameo appearance of a character from that book in this one. A nice treat for the reader who finds themselves fully invested in these characters when reading this author’s books. Although we need to pace ourselves before picking up another book from Gary. We need a break from all the feels we get when we find ourselves routing for these characters. It’s exhausting...but worth it.

this book was in my reading list for a while (since middle school) and i wanted to finally read it after all these years. book itself was amazing, not to mention the ending was really sad but it was a bit weird. it was pretty sudden for me and i really liked the characters and how much more than they seem than what people think they are. in all, i think i would give it a 4/5. would recommend to read, but not a reread worthy in my opinion.

I don’t think I’ve ever cried over a character as much as I cried for Joseph. He deserved another chance at everything, he didn’t deserve the life he had to endure at all. I loved this book for much making me feel like there was a hole in my chest after I finished it within a days time. To me, if a story is able to do that it should be qualified as an amazing book written by an amazing writing.

A short story that was able to impact life and innoncence, death and evil, tragedy and grace. The characters were impactful and their message and development clear.

I purchased my own class set so that I could use this book in my classroom. Highly recommend. Hooks even the kids who say that they hate reading. I read some sections out loud to my students and every time there's audible gasps and tears.

Cover is very plain - not as pictured. Very disappointing!