Francine Garcia’s parents must leave her and her toddler brother, Alfond, with Auntie Flora; Francine’s infant brother Ramón needs heart surgery, and her parents will be spending the next month in Atlanta while he undergoes the procedure. Though Francine’s upset about the disruption to her routine and the separation from her parents, she finds solace in Sunday school, where the kids are tasked with coming up with a recipe for joy. More heartache looms: A child Francine meets suffers a sudden parental death, and Francine learns that Auntie Flora’s fiancée, Sylvia, died before they could marry. There are no easy solutions when it comes to grief, Francine realizes, but she discovers that perhaps the key is a willingness to find joy in unexpected places. Storyline takes a backseat to Francine’s emotional growth as she develops compassion and a greater understanding of loss. While Francine’s flaws make her a strong, relatable character, the rather purposeful plot often drags and feels designed to teach readers lessons; youngsters may lose patience. The narrative is somewhat predictable; any time a precious object is introduced, it almost certainly will soon suffer an accident. Francine and her siblings are biracial; their mother and Auntie Flora are white, while their father is Latine.