Triumphant, tender and wise, New Beginnings by Sue Ross is a rich and rewarding biographical fiction for juvenile readers. Especially resounding for middle and high school girls, this book is set in South Gate, California, a suburb of Los Angeles, in the late 1950s when it was just three and a half dollars to go see the Dodgers and girls still sought their mother’s advice. A sequel to The Club, this archival fiction is robust with everyday anxiety-filled drama and poignant humor as Barbara heads to public school for the first time. In the wake of this move, Barbara meets questions and turmoil with enthusiasm and grace. Better yet, alongside her new best friends, Joyce and Sharon, who help ease and lighten her load, Barbara learns about the sort of person she wants to become. These new experiences lead her to question her parent’s beliefs and her own values proving that an unexamined life is not worth living, but that each new day holds incredible promise.