Lunch with Lenin by Deborah Ellis

I'm not usually a short story lover. I always want to know more about the characters and what happens next. I felt the same way here, but I still liked the book.

Deborah Ellis is such an amazing writer. She crafts such rich complex stories for young readers.

In Lunch with Lenin and other Stories, Ellis showcases children around the world and their interactions with drugs. It's so sad that kids everywhere are faced with both personal addiction and family members struggling with addiction.

Many of these stories show the devastating effect of drug abuse. Personally, I would use this book as a read aloud to give me time to discuss some of the situations because I am not sure how many kids would fully understand or grasp what is happening.

Having said this, I did enjoy reading this book.