Mrs. B is reading...Okay for Now

Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt


I didn’t think I would have any interest in reading an entire book about Doug Swieteck, a minor character from Gary D. Schmidt’s The Wednesday Wars. Was I ever wrong! I have to say, this is the best book I’ve read in awhile. I laughed. I cried. I wanted to build a time machine, travel back to Marysville, circa 1968, and work with Mr. Powell at the Marysville Free Public Library. Oh, and hang out at Spicer’s Deli and drink a really cold coke.

You don’t have to read The Wednesday Wars first to appreciate Okay for Now. It stands on its own. However, if you read both, you may be reminded that there is often more to a person than what you first see on the surface.

After his father is fired, Doug Swieteck moves with his family to “stupid” Marysville, New York. Life at the Swieteck home is less than desirable. Doug’s father is a jerk. His mother he loves dearly, but she is unable to stand up for herself, let alone her boys. His oldest brother is serving in Vietnam, and his other brother is a bit of a hoodlum. No wonder everyone thinks Doug must be a “skinny thug” too.

Lil Spicer is his first new friend in Marysville. She arranges for Doug to work for her father who owns a deli, making deliveries to some of the folks in town. As he begins to interact with the people of Marysville (on his delivery route, at school, and of course, at the library!) he experiences kindness and friendship that he hadn’t expected or even hoped for.

There’s so much more that I could say about this book, but why not stop in the library and check it out for yourself! Also, if you want to know more about birds than you ever thought you’d care to know...this is the book for you.