High Dive

June 1, 2008
Gr 6 Up -While flying to Europe, Arden, 19, meets three other college students heading for a fun-filled sightseeing tour; fairly typical Americans-in-Paris escapades ensue. But Stein goes beyond the usual in this moving novel about teens on the loose in a foreign country. Arden is more complex than many protagonists in popular teen fiction, and the fun-loving Texans she travels with are sketched with depth as supporting characters. The backstory is that Arden is on her way to close and sell her family's cherished vacation home in Sardinia after her father's death and her mother's deployment to Iraq as an Army nurse. Her inner musings are significant and subtle as she tries to make sense of the war and the loss of her dad. Readers reminisce with her as she struggles to face closing the only consistent home her small Army family has known. Paris and Italy come alive through Arden's eyes, and her sensitivity to local customs is beyond the carefree attitude her companions exhibit. In many ways, this is a quiet, introspective novel, but there is romance and laughter as well. Stein deftly portrays anguish, uncertainty, and unexpected joys, and not a moment drags as Arden's bittersweet journey unfolds. Ideal for the thoughtful armchair traveler, this story is engaging enough for readers on the long flight to the enduring wonders of Europe and emerging adulthood."Roxanne Myers Spencer, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green"

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