Wildwood

February 1, 2003
Long-buried memories of a tragedy in their past silently connect three friends and bring an added dimension to the time-tested theme of the power of female friendship in this vibrant debut novel. After 12-year-old Hannah struggles against the sexual advances of a neighbor and pushes him over a cliff to his death, she and her best friends, Liz and Jeanne, pledge never to reveal what happened. But the secret reverberates throughout each of their lives, causing seemingly unrelated difficulties in their relationships with loved ones. Hannah essentially abandons her own teenagers while volunteering with babies born to crack-addicted mothers. Jeanne subjugates herself to a philandering husband, and Liz persistently puts off commitment until, at 50 and on the verge of an abortion, she comes home to confront her friends and try to exorcise their painful memories. Over one short yet cathartic week, the three gain strength from one another and finally begin to take control of their lives as Campbell perceptively explores the complexities of relationships between different genders and ages in this thoroughly enjoyable read.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)