Insight

April 15, 2011

A mid-century family road trip becomes a journey into faith.

Elvira's sister Jessie is born at home in a difficult delivery, several months after their alcoholic but loving father apparently perished in the sinking of his World War II troop ship. As Jessie grows, she becomes decidedly strange, not speaking until after her fourth birthday, when the first word she utters is "Damnation!" Jessie seems to have an unusual connection to psychic forces, able to read some people's minds and sometimes see into the future—but not apparently at will. Their cantankerous, unhappy mother packs up the family, and they hit the road with an itinerant preacher, bound for California. The reason for their trip is not obvious at first, but Elvira gradually comes to believe that her father may not be dead and that Jessie's vision of him is guiding their mother. Under the preacher's kindly ministrations, Elvira slowly develops belief in a benevolent God, and although she remains conflicted about what His role ought to be in her life, she accepts that Jessie's visions are providing much-needed guidance. While Christian beliefs flavor this effort, they never overpower the narrative but are instead organic to it.

Given the generally unloving relationship Elvira has with her mother, the feel-good ending seems too pat, but the supernatural element will extend appeal to a broader audience. (Christian/supernatural fiction. 10 & up)

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August 1, 2011

Gr 7-10-A poignant but flawed novel about a teenager coming of age in 1940s Wisconsin. Elvira has several conflicts: a father, Ray, who walked out on the family; a mother who constantly nags; and-strangest of all-a four-year-old sister who has psychic visions. When Jessie claims that Ray is waiting for them in California, Elvira's mother uproots the family to search for him. Despite Jessie's clairvoyance, this book is more realistic fiction than fantasy: Ray's alcoholism and the family's poverty are depicted in detail. Though references are occasionally made to World War II, it's easy to forget that the book is historical fiction. Elvira's descriptions of her strained familial relationships and pain over her father's absence will resonate with readers. However, Jessie's character seems like a caricature of a small child, and the dialogue is stilted in places. Though the first half of the book is well paced, loose ends are wrapped up too quickly. The vision that Jessie describes to Elvira of their happy life is far too pat to be a satisfying conclusion, and the tense rapport between Elvira and her mother is too palpable and raw to be resolved in a single conversation. The climactic scene in which Elvira finally deciphers Jessie's cryptic prediction about their father may come as a surprise to inexperienced readers but more mature readers will see it coming.-Mahnaz Dar, formerly at Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City

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