Touching on Family

Far from the Tree by Robin Benway

New York, NY : HarperTeen, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2017]

374 p. ; 22 cm.

At first glance, it might seem surprising that Far From the Tree won the 2017 National Book Award.  In some ways it seems like a typical teen "problem novel" - one about three teens who share the same birth mother, but who have had very different lives since birth, and reconnect in various ways as they try to bond with each other and figure out what family really means.     

But the writing is strong in this novel and - in spite of myself - I found myself tearing up several times throughout the book. The emotional moves in the book are subtly developed and when they reach a climax they are quite convincing.

The novel also draws strength from having both a common thread - the three characters are all children of the same birth mother - and from having really complex dynamics: one of the sisters has just given up a baby of her own, one of the teens has an adoptive family that is experiencing a divorce, and one of the teens never got adopted at all.

Each character grows separately and in interactions with the others as the novel moves through several intense episodes and moves toward a final climax that is surprising and also satisfying.

If you have a student looking for a compelling read about family relationships, this novel is highly recommended.

First Loves and Second Marriages

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer Smith
New York : Little, Brown, 2013, c2012.
236 p. ; 22 cm.

Sometimes it's just nice to read a book that delivers what you hope it will - in this case a tender and interesting love story between likable characters.  Add a bit of overseas travel, family drama, and well-tuned dialogue and you have the makings of a sweet read.

Much of the story is devoted to Hadley's difficulties with her estranged father, who left his first family after falling in love with a new woman while teaching in Oxford.  The father wants a relationship with Hadley, and Hadley is coming to be in his wedding, but she's sad, angry and determined not to like his new wife.  On the trip over she's fortunate enough to miss one flight, and end up with the very likable Oliver - who takes a shine to her.

Separated at the airport, Hadley has to attend the wedding. As you can imagine a lot of issues get worked through (and maybe worked out) including - her relationship to her father, her feelings about his new wife, and whether or not Oliver really was interested in her and whether she can even find him in London before she has to return home.

I would recommend this to students wanting a good love story, with believable, well-developed characters.  It's also a book to recommend when looking for a teen romance that does not involve sex.  I've seen reviewers who compare it to Sarah Dessen books, and I'd say that is on target.    

Home at Heart

Feels Like Home by e.E. Charlton-Trujillo
New York : Delacorte Press, c2007.
213 p. ; 22 cm.

I wanted to read this novel before the author, e.E. Charlton-Trujillo came to our school for the second time this October. I was glad I picked it.  It's a bit of a throw-back novel, in a sweet way.  There's no aliens, zombies, dystopian overlords, fights to the death, or raunchy sexual situations. What there is, is an homage to S.E. Hinton's 1967 classic, The Outsiders and an homage to the small-town outsider - an outsider with heart and brains and the determination to go on to bigger things.

It's a good old-fashioned drama - with grief for lost parents and family and grief for a past that is no more - all told though the viewpoint of a teen girl who is trying to come to terms with the past and with a brother who has let her down.

It's not a fast novel or a flashy novel, but it's a good, solid read.

Additionally, the author is a wonderful guest to have at a high school. She is passionate about writing, about connecting with young people, and about living a life of art and connection.  She's great with students and I'll be encouraging kids to check out her books and be looking forward to reading her latest novel, the award-winning, Fat Angie.

Dessen Does Not Disappoint

Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen
New York : Viking, 1998.
281 p. ; 22 cm.

Novels by Sarah Dessen are popular at UHS Library and I've been meaning to read one of her novels for a long time. After finishing The Handmaid's Tale for our book club, I decided to pull Someone Like You off the shelf and take it home to read.

The novel focuses on two senior high school friends, Scarlett and Halley who are neighbors and best friends. Early in the novel Scarlett is pregnant and Halley is changing from her parents' "good girl" into a young woman interested in serious dating, and breaking rules. Halley's coming of age is complicated by having a mother who's professional life is being a writer/expert on raising adolescents. It sounds all rather boilerplate and boring, but...

Dessen has an extraordinary ear for dialogue and for subtlety that escapes many less capable YA authors. Her strength is very rich character development that avoids stock characters and stereotypes. Additionally her plotting is interesting and moves along briskly; I found the book hard to put down. Probably the most refreshing aspect of this book was the way in which almost all the characters in the book are sympathetic, but imperfect. Reading it, I found my sympathies shifting between characters as they developed and confronted situations that showed their deeper qualities...

I would definitely recommend Sarah Dessen to anyone interested in the "problem novel" who wants a well written, complex, character-driven but enjoyable story.