<i>Nothing but Ghosts</i> (review)

2009; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 63; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1353/bcc.0.1099

ISSN

1558-6766

Autores

Deborah Stevenson,

Resumo

Reviewed by: Nothing but Ghosts Deborah Stevenson Kephart, Beth . Nothing but Ghosts. Geringer/HarperTeen, 2009 [288p]. Library ed. ISBN 978-0-06-166796-1$17.99 Reviewed from galleys R* Gr. 9-12 It's the summer before Katie's senior year, and she's working on the grounds of the Everlast manor, owned by the reclusive Miss Martine. Initially, she mainly relishes the chance to keep busy, as she's still recovering from her mother's recent death, but soon she begins to suspect that the garden project is not all that it seems, and that the caretaker, Old Olson, hides a secret. Kephart employs this basic framework to spin a story of human connection and human loss, of looking forward and remaining frozen in time, as flashbacks to Katie's mother's life and last days interleave with Katie's unearthing of secrets about Miss Martine's past. The style is elegantly polished yet tender, with the book deftly illuminating complicated emotions and relationships in quick flashes of interaction; Katie's budding romance with her co-worker, Danny, her friendship with the soignée librarian who aids her research, and her father's growing comradeship with the needy preschooler across the street all evolve quietly yet affectingly. Miss Martine's mystery itself is rather modest, but that's not Katie's real puzzle anyway, and readers will be touched by the story of her finding a way to go on without someone you love. [End Page 25] Copyright © 2009 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

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