"All summers take me back to the sea."The abstract is hidden because it may contain spoilers. If you would like to read the full summary, simply use your cursor to highlight the next few lines and it will magically appear.
Abstract: Twelve-year-old Jane, who lives at the beach in a run-down old house with her mother, two brothers, and sister, has an eventful summer accompanying her pastor on bible deliveries, meeting former boyfriends of her mother's, and being coerced into babysitting for a family of ill-mannered children.
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade; 260 pages
Abstract: Twelve-year-old Jane, who lives at the beach in a run-down old house with her mother, two brothers, and sister, has an eventful summer accompanying her pastor on bible deliveries, meeting former boyfriends of her mother's, and being coerced into babysitting for a family of ill-mannered children.
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade; 260 pages
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4 comments:
While I think this is a beautifully written book, I did find the story to be lacking consistency. I suppose, it is the age of the main character that could make things feel that way, but the way she was raised by an understanding, involved mother, makes it hard for me to believe that she would keep her secret for so long or that her mother's boyfriends could be news to her & all show up during the same summer.
Just a question - do we know that Horvath is an American citizen (since she is a Canadian resident)? Also, how easy are you finding it to track if a book is originally published in the US and not in another country first? (Just two newbey driteria which always drive me crazy!)
Good questions! In many cases we find it very difficult to determine with certainty the residency or citizenship of an author. Two clues point to Polly Horvath being eligible:
** she previously won a Newbery Honor for Everything on a Waffle
** According to her website, she grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan
As far as your second question... we primarily rely on the page at the front of the book that includes all the bibliographic data.
These are not perfect methods, but - most of the time - they work for us.
I agree this is beautifully written. Unlike anonymous, I have no trouble with the character keeping a secret as she realizes herself separate from the rest of her family. I can believe that the three men have probably been around before but Jane was not in the place in her life to notice or care about them.
It's an excellent coming-of-age novel with a strong sense of place, adventure and intriguing characters.
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