What would you do if you wrote a letter, tossed it in your closet, and it wrote back? In Right Back at You by Carolyn Mackler, Mason and Talia live in two different decades, but they’re able to communicate through letters swapped through time.
Mason is living in NYC in 2023, and he’s kinda going through it. His dad moved out, he’s being bullied, and his mom is struggling with alcohol. When his therapist suggests he write a letter to express his feelings, he chooses Albert Einstein and then throws it in his closet, thinking no one will ever see it. The next day, he’s surprised to discover a reply.
The letter Mason receives isn’t from Albert Einstein, though. It’s from a girl named Talia from Pennsylvania. But the where she’s from isn’t as strange as the when – because Talia is from the year 1987. She may live in a completely different decade, but it turns out that she’s going through similar stuff. Talia’s classmates make fun of her for being Jewish, and she isn’t allowed to join the baseball team because she’s a girl. No one seems to understand her. Except for Mason, a random boy from the future whose letters make her feel less alone.
From the award-winning, bestselling author of Not If I Can Help It, a story about reaching across time to find the support you need against bullies, bad friends, and antisemitism.
Mason lives in 2023. His parents have just split up, and there’s a guy at school who won’t get off his case. As part of an assignment, he writes a letter to Albert Einstein and it ends up getting a little too personal. He throws the letter into his closet…
…and the next day he gets a letter back from a girl named Talia, who lives in 1987. She has problems of her own, including classmates who make jokes because she’s Jewish. She thought her friends would have her back. But it ends up the only person she really has to talk to is… a random boy from the future?
In the tradition of such beloved novels as When You Reach Me and Save Me a Seat, Carolyn Mackler has written a funny, all-too-relatable story about finding the friend you need… even if that friends happens to live in another year.
Right Back At You
AUTHOR: Carolyn Mackler
PUBLISHER: Scholastic Press
DATE: March 4, 2025
Both in the seventh grade, Mason and Talia form a friendship that spans time, and the two of them continue to swap letters, stories, and life experiences. While Mason and Talia are both struggling with some tough stuff, Right Back at You is as funny as it is heartfelt, and it’s sure to fill you with hope.
The idea of swapping letters through time was so magical that author Carolyn Mackler decided to try it out for herself here on YAYOMG! She chose to swap letters with her seventh-grade self – keep reading to see their convo!
Carolyn Mackler Swaps Letters With Her Seventh Grade Self:
CAROLYN MACKLER: Right Back at You is a novel told in letters between a girl, Talia, in 1987 and a boy, Mason, who lives in 2023. These two seventh-graders find a way to communicate with each other and quickly realize that they are both being bullied. This happened to me when I was twelve. I mean, I didn’t write letters with a boy in the future! But kids at school made fun of me because my dad is Jewish. It destroyed my self-esteem for many years and I’ve always wondered if there’s anything I could have done differently.
I have learned some things along the way–and I did a lot of thinking about it as I wrote Right Back at You—and I’d love to share my insights with my twelve-year-old self.
💌 Dear Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn,
Hey, young me! How’s it going? I kinda remember how it’s going because I was once you a bunch of decades ago. Now I’m a grown up and I’ve written a new novel that I want to tell you about. Write back soon!
Your friend,
Adult Carolyn
💌 Dear Adult Carolyn,
Okay, this is weird. But whatever. You’ve written a book? That’s so cool! Are you famous?
From,
Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn
💌 Dear Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn,
I’ve written a bunch of novels. That’s my job. My kids wouldn’t say I’m famous. They’d ask what I’m making for dinner tonight. Yes, you have kids in the future. But I can’t tell you anything else about them because, like Talia and Mason decide in Right Back at You, I don’t want to say anything to disrupt your destiny.
The reason I’m writing is because I know you’re in seventh grade now and it’s kinda tough. Want to talk about it?
Your Friend,
Adult Carolyn
💌 Dear Adult Carolyn,
No. I don’t want to talk about it.
From,
Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn
💌Dear Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn,
If you don’t want to talk about it, I will. In Right Back at You, a girl and a boy from different decades find a way to write letters to each other. He’s in the current time and she’s in the 1980s and they connect over the fact that they’re both being bullied. Sound familiar?
Your Friend,
Adult Carolyn
💌 Dear Adult Carolyn,
Still not talking.
From,
Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn
💌 Dear Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn,
I wrote Right Back at You because I’ve never forgotten what you (I? we?) went through in seventh grade–the kids teasing you (me? us?) about being Jewish and how ashamed we felt. Even though there’s nothing wrong with being Jewish! There’s nothing wrong with anything about anyone’s identity. But people can make you feel that way. Anyway, I’m here to tell you that it gets better.
Your friend,
Adult Carolyn
💌 Dear Adult Carolyn,
Yeah? How? It sure doesn’t feel that way.
From,
Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn
💌 Dear Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn,
Time. Sharing things with adults you trust. Remembering that you’re not the problem here–the bullies are the problem. Also, finding a friend you can talk to about what’s going on. It just takes one friend to feel less alone.
In Right Back at You, Talia and Mason form an unlikely friendship and support each other through a lot of tough things.
Your friend,
Adult Carolyn
💌 Dear Adult Carolyn,
I have a best friend, but she’s in a different grade, and I’m too embarrassed to tell her about it. What if she thinks I’m a loser? Also, how can I get a copy of Right Back at You? I want to read it right now.
From,
Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn
💌 Dear Twelve-Year-Old Carolyn,
Gotta talk about the loser comment. One thing Talia tells Mason is this: “If you go around calling yourself a loser, you’re giving away your power to a bully.” Also, that best friend of yours? Stephie? She is STILL your friend! You can definitely share what’s going on with her. She will be supportive and kind. And trust me on that one because it’s my life too.
And yes! You can buy a copy of Right Back at You, but you have to wait until it comes out on March 4, 2025. But don’t worry. Because even if you can’t get your hands on the book for a few decades, know that this story has been in your head all along.
Love,
Adult Carolyn
📚ALL BOOKED: Searching for your next favorite read? Our YAYBOOKS! Roundup features 36 books and graphic novels releasing in March!
