Skip to Main Content

The Thing About Luck

About The Book

'Kouun is "good luck" in Japanese, and one year my family had none of it.'

Just when Summer thinks nothing else can possibly go wrong, an emergency whisks her parents away to Japan, right before harvest season. But the mortgage has to be paid, and so Summer's grandparents are going to help with harvest instead - taking Summer, her little brother Jaz and their dog Thunder with them.

Obaachan and Jiichan are… well, they're old fashioned, and demanding. Between helping Obaachan cook for the workers, covering for her when her back pain worsens, and worrying about her little brother, who can't seem to make any friends, Summer has her hands full. Then one of the boys who Summer has known forever starts paying extra attention to her. But what begins as a welcome distraction from the hard work soon turns into a mess of its own… and once again Summer ends up disappointing Obaachan.

But that's the thing about luck - bad luck can always get worse. And when that happens, Summer has to figure out how to change it and save her family, even if it means further displeasing Obaachan. Surely kouun is coming soon…?

About The Author

Photo Credit:

Cynthia Kadohata is the author of the Newbery Medal–winning book Kira-Kira, the National Book Award winner The Thing About Luck, the Jane Addams Peace Award and PEN America Award winner WeedflowerCracker!, Outside BeautyA Million Shades of GrayHalf a World AwayCheckedA Place to Belong, Saucy, and several critically acclaimed adult novels, including The Floating World. She lives with her dogs and hockey-playing son in California. Visit her online at CynthiaKadohata.com.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's UK (June 6, 2013)
  • Length: 288 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781471116865
  • Ages: 10 - 99

Browse Related Books

Resources and Downloads

High Resolution Images

More books from this author: Cynthia Kadohata