This gentle middle grade novel had a lot of things to love. The protagonist, Vanessa, is spunky and sweet. The backdrop of museums and displaying things that had value to someone at some point is profoundly human.

The thing I appreciated the most, though, was how Sales addresses grief in the novel.

Growing out of one phase of life and into another is not always easy. We have to let go of the certainty of how things have always been in favor of the unknown. That's scary for anyone at any stage of life--but since it's usually at this tender middle school age when it's happening for the first time for most kids, it's nice to know they can turn to a story like "The Museum of Lost and Found" to find some comfort in navigating the new (and at times deceptively deep) waters of adolescence.

Highly recommend to all readers.

Click the cover to visit the publisher's site.