Have You Seen Luis Velez?

By Catherine Ryan Hyde

A boy and an elderly woman bond over a mysterious disappearance, discovering kindness amidst fear.

4.4/5 Goodreads · 42,528 ratings

320 pages

$14.95Save 6%

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Bookroo's summary

Raymond, feeling out of place in his fractured family and school, finds solace in a blind elderly neighbor, Mildred. When she asks about her missing caretaker, Luis Velez, Raymond embarks on a quest to find him. As their friendship deepens, they confront a neighborhood steeped in fear and prejudice. Together, they learn that even in a world filled with darkness, acts of kindness can illuminate the path forward. Will Raymond uncover the truth about Luis, and can Mildred find hope in their unlikely bond?

From the publisher

An Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestseller.New York Times bestselling author Catherine Ryan Hyde brings heartwarming authenticity to the story of two strangers who find that kindness is a powerful antidote to fear. Raymond Jaffe feels like he doesn’t belong. Not with his mother’s new family. Not as a weekend guest with his father and his father’s wife. Not at school, where he’s an outcast. After his best friend moves away, Raymond has only two real connections: to the feral cat he’s tamed and to a blind ninety-two-year-old woman in his building who’s introduced herself with a curious question: Have you seen Luis Velez?Mildred Gutermann, a German Jew who narrowly escaped the Holocaust, has been alone since her caretaker disappeared. She turns to Raymond for help, and as he tries to track Luis down, a deep and unexpected friendship blossoms between the two.Despondent at the loss of Luis, Mildred isolates herself further from a neighborhood devolving into bigotry and fear. Determined not to let her give up, Raymond helps her see that for every terrible act the world delivers, there is a mirror image of deep kindness, and Mildred helps Raymond see that there’s hope if you have someone to hold on to.

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