Nicole Lea Helget

Fern lives with her stepdad Toivo and two little brothers; her baby brother and her mother were killed in a car accident. Toivo, a veteran, struggles to find and hold work (often through no fault of his own), and Fern's maternal grandpa wants custody of the children, but Fern wants to stay with Toivo and her brothers in the woods, where she often forages for berries, mushrooms, fiddleheads, and more. Fern has her mom's old recipe cards, which become the basis for her STEM project about food in the woods - the same woods that are in danger from a new fracking operation. Her two best friends, Mark-Richard and Alkomso, pair up to work on a "What Is Fracking?" project. Mark-Richard and his brother have recently been split up and put in different foster homes, and Fern knows that CPS is visiting her family soon as well - but caseworker Miss Tassel (actually Dr. Tassel) breaks the stereotypical social worker mold, listens to Fern, and stands up to Fern's grandpa. There is less resolution than in some middle grade books - there is a moratorium on fracking in Fern's woods, but it's still a possibility - and a dog does die, but life (in the form of puppies) goes on.

See also: Me and Marvin Gardens by Amy Sarig King

Quotes

"True learning comes from being open to wrong answers." (Mr. Flores, 13)

"Grandpa thinks he knows what's best for everyone without asking them." (25)

"I've seen corporations convince governments to do lots of crazy things." (Toivo, 91)

I don't know how he's making connections in his head. I've noticed that adults sometimes do this thing where they don't answer the question a kid has asked and instead start going on about something they're comfortable talking about instead. (94)

"Adults do all kinds of dumb things to handle problems." (Alkomso to Fern, 122)

It was easier when we agreed about everything.
But now I have to have my own mind. And she has to have her own mind. And somehow we have to figure out how to be a different kind of friend to each other. (180)

From Author's Note:

The struggles of Fern's family are ones I see often, which is why there's sometimes a rush to embrace any new industry promising employment, even when it is temporary, even when the downside is environmental destruction. (264)

We can't make informed decisions about food, water, or energy from a position of ignorance. (266)… (more)