The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman, Gennifer Choldenko
The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman, Gennifer Choldenko
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The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman

Author: Gennifer Choldenko

Narrator: Javier Prusky

Unabridged: 6 hr 56 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/11/2024


Synopsis

Everyone will be rooting for a happy ending for Hank, a boy struggling to hold his family together when his mom doesn't come home, in this gripping story from Newbery Honor winner Gennifer Choldenko.

“One of those rare and important books . . . Hank Hooperman may well be the most resourceful, courageous, and loving big brother in the history of children’s literature.”—Katherine Applegate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The One and Only Ivan

A CALIBA GOLDEN POPPY AWARD WINNER • A SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL AND KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

When eleven-year-old Hank’s mom doesn’t come home, he takes care of his toddler sister, Boo, like he always does. But it’s been a week now. They are out of food and mom has never stayed away this long… Hank knows he needs help, so he and Boo seek out the stranger listed as their emergency contact.

But asking for help has consequences. It means social workers, and a new school, and having to answer questions about his mom that he's been trying to keep secret. And if they can't find his mom soon, Hank and Boo may end up in different foster homes--he could lose everything.

Gennifer Choldenko has written a heart-wrenching, healing, and ultimately hopeful story about how complicated family can be. About how you can love someone, even when you can’t rely on them. And about the transformative power of second chances.

About The Author

Gennifer Choldenko is a New York Times bestselling and Newbery Honor Award-winning author. She's also the youngest of four siblings and was nicknamed "snot-nose" as a child. So perhaps it's not surprising that her books often feature quirky and tender depictions of brothers and sisters. Her most loved titles include: Al Capone Does My Shirts and three other "Tales from Alcatraz", Notes from a Liar and Her Dog, Orphan Eleven, One-Third Nerd, and Chasing Secrets.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Emily on September 17, 2024

This was excellent. It's quite possibly my favorite middle-grade read of 2024 thus far. This is the kind of story that sucks you in from the very beginning. I couldn't stop thinking about Hank and his sister Boo. When Hank's mom didn't come home, he started to worry. When it had been a week, and the......more

Goodreads review by Bookishrealm on May 19, 2025

This was my very first Gennifer Choldenko book, and it definitely won't be my last. Filled with so much heart and emotion, The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman takes a close look at the long lasting affects/impact of parental neglect and abandonment. Though gut-wrenching at every turn, Choldenko beau......more

Goodreads review by Pooja on April 29, 2024

After his mother has been gone for a week, eleven-year-old Hank and his toddler sister Boo are forced to seek out the stranger listed as their emergency contact. But with Lou Ann’s help comes social workers and a new school, and Hank worries he might have made a huge mistake. I don’t read much middle......more

Goodreads review by DaNae on August 08, 2024

After eleven-year-old Hank Hooperman’s mother has been missing for a week, he takes his three-year-old sister on a cross town bus to an address of someone he has never heard of, but was listed as an emergency contact. Hank is able to get temporary help and begin to build a new life while worrying fr......more

Goodreads review by Emily on August 19, 2024

Anyone else feel like middle grade authors are competing to see how much childhood trauma they can pack into one character? I see your impoverished, grandparent-less child of an unknown father abandoned in a trailer that gets blown away by a tornado—and I raise you with an impoverished, grandparent-......more


Quotes

A Texas Lone Star Reading List Selection

★ "Moving and perceptive
: Hankies are a must." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"From the first line of Hank‘s engaging first-person narrative to the last, he comes across as a reliable, sensible boy who is aware that his options are few and is determined to make the right choices. Choldenko speaks from the heart in this compelling story of Hank and Boo’s found family." —Booklist, starred review

★ "Hank’s story will break readers’ hearts before putting them back together again. Highly recommended." —School Library Journal, starred review

"Readers will immediately be drawn into the world of The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman, whose endearing and memorable characters will inspire repeated readings. This book tackles a tricky subject with grace, showing readers that even seemingly hopeless situations can offer happy endings." —BookPage, starred review

"A gut-punch tale that is by turns heartbreaking and hopeful." —Publishers Weekly

Hank Hooperman may well be the most resourceful, courageous, and loving big brother in the history of children’s literature. Brimming with Gennifer Choldenko’s trademark wit and heart, this is one of those rare and important books that belongs on every shelf.”
— Katherine Applegate, Newbery Medal winner for The One and Only Ivan


Awards

  • CALIBA Golden Poppy Award - Octavia E. Butler Award
  • California Young Reader Medal
  • Judy Lopez Memorial Award
  • Maryland Children's Book Award
  • Nevada Young Readers Award
  • New Hampshire Great Stone Face Award
  • Northern California Book Reviewers Award (previously BABRA)
  • Oklahoma Sequoyah Children's Book Award
  • Oregon Book Award
  • Pennsylvania Keystone to Reading Book Award
  • South Carolina Junior Book Award
  • Tennessee Volunteer State Award
  • Tennessee Volunteer State Book Award
  • Utah Beehive Book Award
  • Vermont Golden Dome Book Award