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Yay! Glad to see you posted, Jade. 

I feel like I’m going to have a lot to say to start but I promise my future comments won’t be as long.

Like everyone else on this page, my comments will have some spoilers—but I’ll limit them to the chapter we’re discussing each day! So, here are a few observations from Chapter One:

> A bunch of characters are introduced rapidly: Reef (as narrator), Willis (offscreen), and the trio of Helmer siblings—Liam, Carolyn, and Declan. Two more get mentioned within the next paragraph—Reef’s and the Helmers’ moms. 

> I have a feeling I will incorporate “Walk much, or just read about it?” into my own litany of remarks to make (in a friendly way, of course).

> The story immediately introduces important conflicts for Reef. First, we find out his housemate Declan is making life miserable for him. Then, we learn of Reef’s inner conflict, the turmoil of losing his mother. 

> And then, like Jade said, we all get pulled into the shared bad memory of the Covid pandemic and its lockdowns and tragedies.

> I’m always looking for callbacks to previous Gordon Korman stories. One I saw in the first chapter is a Canadian reference right at the get-go (the school librarian’s rock climbing trip)—GRK often mentions Canada in his stories.

> And the big question comes at the end of the chapter–just like Jade said: What’s the deal with remembering-but-not-remembering a tomato garden?!?