Halfway to Harmony

By Barbara O'Connor

A boy seeks adventure and self-discovery after losing his brother.

5.0/7 Bookroo expert·4.0/5 Goodreads · 837 ratings

240 pages· 35,536 words· Est. 5 hour read

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Bookroo's summary

Walter Tipple dreams of adventure with his late brother, Tank. When he meets Posey, the bold new neighbor, and Banjo, an eccentric adventurer, Walter embarks on a summer journey. As he navigates friendship and bravery, Walter must discover who he is without the brother he idolized. Will he find his own path in a world without Tank?

From the publisher

A heartfelt middle-grade novel from New York Times bestselling author Barbara O’Connor about a boy whose life is upended after the loss of his older brother–timeless, classic, and whimsical. Walter Tipple is looking for adventure. He keeps having a dream that his big brother, Tank, appears before him and says, “Let’s you and me go see my world, little man.” But Tank went to the army and never came home, and Walter doesn’t know how to see the world without him. Then he meets Posey, the brash new girl from next door, and an eccentric man named Banjo, who’s off on a bodacious adventure of his own. What follows is a summer of taking chances, becoming braver, and making friends–and maybe Walter can learn who he wants to be without the brother he always wanted to be like. Halfway to Harmony is an utterly charming story about change and growing up.

At a glance

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 240
Words: 35,536
Reading age: 8–12
Audience: Juvenile Reader
Lexile: ~750L

Themes & topics

Books about friendship Books about death Books about siblings Books about hot air balloons Books about brothers

For the grown-ups

The parent guide

What families may want to know

Every family reads differently. These are the concepts our editors noticed in this book — worth seeking out for some readers, worth knowing about for others. The list isn't exhaustive, but it's a spoiler-light head start.

Presence of Death

This book mentions an older brother going off to war and not coming home.

After the last page

Talk about it together

Walter's new neighbor, Posie, is bossy and he is not looking to be friends with her. However, she turns out to be just the thing Walter needs to move through his brother's death. Have you every met someone that you did not think you could be friends with, but ended up really liking them?

What has helped you through a hard time?

Posie has a hidden fear, something we would never have anticipated. How does Walter help her?

What readers & critics say