Reading Challenge 2021: A Book about Growing Older

Do you count the days until your birthday? Is there a growth chart or wall at home where you mark your height? Whether you want to stay a kid forever or can't wait to grow up, getting older is a normal part of life. The physical sense is one side of it, but anyone can experience change and growth, no matter their age!

This Reading Challenge category is pretty open to interpretation. It doesn't have to be a book about someone celebrating their birthday. Since fictional characters usually learn something by the end of the story, you could say they become older and wiser. That means you can count almost any novel for this category and it's not cheating!
 

Bronze and Sunflower by Cao Wenxuan
Bronze and Sunflower by Cao Wenxuan
After Sunflower's father passes away, she is adopted by Bronze's family. Together they experience the ups and downs of life in a small rural village in China.
 

Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros
Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros
Efrén's world is turned upside down when his mother is deported to Mexico. He steps up to take care of his younger siblings during their family's struggle to reunite.
 

Kasey & Ivy by Alison Hughes
Kasey & Ivy by Alison Hughes
When 12-year-old Kasey has to spend a month in the geriatric ward, she connects with the older hospital patients in unexpected ways.
 

The Season of Styx Malone by Kekla Magoon
The Season of Styx Malone by Kekla Magoon
Caleb and his brother Bobby Gene have a cool new neighbour. Styx tells them about the Great Escalator Trade, which sounds like an exciting game. But soon they find themselves in over their heads…
 

Unsettled by Reem Faruqi
Unsettled by Reem Faruqi
Nurah just wants to belong when her family moves from Pakistan to America. Will joining the swim team help her make new friends?