For Belize, I read Beka Lamb by Zee Edgell, a coming-of-age story set during Belize’s struggle for independence from Great Britain. The book was published in 1982, and at times, I felt as if the author had specifically written it for my Read Around the World project. Obviously, she didn’t! But the book hit all the right notes with providing information about Belize, from details about topography, flora and fauna to race relations, political discourse, and socioeconomic issues. I learned about the weather, local food, and how people gathered and socialized all while reading a perfectly crafted story.

Like I said, it’s as if the author was assigned the task of writing the perfect book for a Read Around the World quest and she CRUSHED the assignment.

These days, I am a sucker for a coming-of-age story since my daughter Pippa just turned eleven and is starting middle school in August. (Holy shit!) Beka Lamb is a fourteen-year-old girl who is struggling academically while her best friend Toycie, a seventeen-year-old, is thriving at their convent school. As the girls struggle with the challenges of growing up, their country struggles with parallel challenges of forging a national identity separate from Great Britain.

The more I think about this book, the more I love it. I gave it four stars on Goodreads, but I might have to bump it up to five.