Saturday, April 29, 2023

A Long Stretch of Bad Days by Mindy McGinnis

Bad news for Lydia: she needs one more history credit in order to graduate. Her guidance counselor really screwed up. Lydia wants to be a journalist. Now, those plans might get derailed before they even start. The school administration offers to give her credit for her podcast if she covers more local history. 

Lydia started her podcast to give herself an outlet for investigation. Sadly, the 'investigations' have mostly been fluff pieces. Her town, Henley, is a place where no one rocks the boat. Being nice and polite is the Henley way. But Lydia needs her podcast to be grittier, so she turns to the other student who was also shorted a history credit, Bristal Jamison. Bristal is rough and doesn't think once, let alone twice, about what she says. The Jamison family has such a bad reputation, that Bristal follows every introduction with, "I'm not pregnant." Lydia asks her to join and hopes to keep her focused and appropriate during the broadcast. 

The two plan to cover the worst week in the town's history, aka the Long Stretch of Bad Days. First, came the tornado that devastated so many buildings. Then the flood that killed all the dogs in the shelter. Finally, the dead body in the trailer, a murder unsolved. To investigate, you have to ask questions. The tornado and the flood are not too much of a problem. The murder (and the missing girl - yes, another unsolved mystery that no one ever talks about) makes people uneasy. 

How do Lydia and Bristal cover history in a town where nobody wants to talk? First, they have to overcome their own differences and then...press on and be careful. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the relationship between Lydia and Bristol as the navigate the twists and turns of their search for the truth. I hope you find it is entertaining as I did. 

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site