Beginners Welcome: A Moving Middle Grade Novel of Magical Realism and Hope After Loss for Kids (Ages 8-12)

The acclaimed author of Where the Watermelons Grow is back with a heartwarming coming of age story perfect for fans of Lynda Mullaly Hunt and Ali Benjamin, about finding friendship after a tragic loss.

It’s been eighty-three days since Annie Lee’s daddy died, but she still sees reminders of him everywhere. His record player mysteriously plays his favorite songs, there’s shaving cream in the sink every morning, and the TV keeps flipping to the Duke basketball games he loved.

She knows Mama notices it too, but Mama’s been working around the clock to make ends meet. To make matters worse, Annie Lee’s friends ditched her over the summer. In this heartfelt book about dealing with grief, she feels completely alone―until she meets Mitch.

Though Mitch is tough and confident on the outside, she may need a friend just as badly as Annie Lee. But after losing so much, Annie Lee is afraid to let anyone get too close.

And Mitch isn’t the only friend trying to break through Annie Lee’s defenses. Ray, an elderly pianist who plays at a local mall, has been giving her piano lessons. His music is pure magic―a touch of magical realism for kids―and Annie Lee hopes it might be the key to healing her broken heart. But when Ray goes missing, searching for him means breaking a promise to Mitch.

Faced with once again losing those who mean the most to her, Annie Lee must make a choice: retreat back into her shell, or find the courage to risk admitting how much she needs Mitch and Ray―even if it means getting hurt all over again.

Just like in her debut, Where the Watermelons Grow, Cindy Baldwin brings her signature twist of magic to this authentically heartfelt story.

A Whitney Award finalist

An AML Award finalist

• An Unlikely Friendship: Mitch is a tough skateboarder, and Annie Lee just wants to be invisible. But after her old friends ditch her, Mitch might be the only one who truly understands what it’s like to be alone.
• Music as Healing: An elderly pianist named Ray begins giving Annie Lee lessons, and she hopes his magical music might be the key to mending her broken heart.
• A Heartfelt Mystery: When Ray suddenly disappears, Annie Lee must break a promise to her new best friend to search for him, risking the very connection she’s just begun to build.
• Finding Your Voice: After losing her dad, Annie Lee feels completely alone. This moving middle grade novel is about learning to open up, risk your heart, and let people in again.

Cindy Baldwin is the award-winning author of Where the Watermelons Grow, Beginners Welcome, and The Stars of Whistling Ridge. She is a disabled activist, cofounder of Middle Grade at Heart, and We Need Diverse Books mentor. She lives just outside Portland, Oregon, with her husband and daughter. To learn more about Cindy, visit cindybaldwinbooks.com.