How to Save a Superhero

Ten-year-old Addie knows that Superheroes aren't real, and that they certainly don't hide out in retirement communities, but she may just have to change her mind.

Addie and her mom never stay in one place too long. They've been up and down and all around the country. When her mom, Tish, gets a new job at Happy Valley Village Retirement Community in Pennsylvania, Addie believes they'll be on the road again in a month. But this time, something is different--make that, someone. Mr. Norris, a grumpy resident of Happy Valley and. . .a former superhero?

Well, that's what Marwa, whose mom also works at Happy Valley, would try and have Addie believe. Addie and her friend Dickson know better even if there are things they can't explain. Like the time Mr. Norris was about to get hit by a car and was suddenly on the other side of the road or the way his stare seems to take root in Addie's stomach.

When a man starts prowling the Happy Valley grounds, claiming to be the great-nephew of a resident, Addie, Marwa, and Dickson soon stumble into a grand conspiracy involving the Manhattan Project, a shady weapons company, and the fate of the human race, in this smart, funny middle grade novel.★ "Featuring a cast whose distinct personalities are clearly built out, Freeman’s imaginative, suspenseful, and well-paced novel of intergenerational friendship will keep readers guessing."—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Freeman delivers on the mystery, adventure, and fantasy in this middle grade novel. Most characters are cued as white."—School Library Journal

"Behind an uncommonly savvy, redoubtable protagonist, Freeman stocks her cast with a diverse array of equally vivacious characters, including as lively and hilarious a group of resident seniors as ever was. . . . A clever, lively romp."—Kirkus Reviews

"Filled with science fiction, a fun cast of characters, including a few who are unsavory, and a somewhat surprise ending, young readers will enjoy the adventure and the relationships between the characters." —School Library ConnectionRuth Freeman is the author of One Good Thing About America, which received a Golden Kite Honor Award and was called a "touching novel" by School Library Journal. Ruth grew up in rural Pennsylvania but now lives in Maine where she teaches English language learners in an elementary school.