Description:
It is the summer of 1958, and life in the small Texas community of Graham Camp should be simple and carefree. But not for twelve-year-old Sammie Tucker. Sammie has plenty of questions about her mother's "nerve" problems. About shock treatments. About whether her mother loves her.
When her mother commits suicide and a not-so-favorite aunt arrives, Sammie has to choose who to trust with her deepest fears: Her best friend who has an opinion about everything, the mysterious kid from California whose own troubles plague him, or her round-faced neighbor with gentle advice and strong shoulders to cry on. Then there's the elderly widower who seems nice but has his own dark past.
Trusting is one thing, but accepting the truth may be the hardest thing Sammie has ever done.
My Thoughts:
This was a tender and thoughtful story about a young girl who's had to deal with more than her fair share of grief. I thought Stewart handled the storyline with insightful prose and made Sammie's feelings very real. At times I grew very frustrated for Sammie and wanted to come into her life and help her. And doesn't a good book do that--make us want to just into the story to help? On a personal note, this story was hard for me to read because it hit close to home. It certainly has brought up some powerful emotions of my own. I guess that's another mark of a good story; when the writing speaks to us personally.
I look forward to reading more by Stewart!
Book Bullets:
- My rating: 5 out of 5 stars
- Genre: youth
- Themes: overcoming adversity, being loved
- Part of a Series: no
- Publication year: 2010
- Publisher: Faith Words
