A Thousand Minutes to Sunlight

March 1, 2021
Twelve-year-old Cora begins to feel less alone. First-person narrator Cora pushes back against the internal voice of anxiety she thinks of as "Brain" during the tumultuous week after her anxiety breakdown at school. Her best friend has moved away from their small beach community near San Diego, and on top of that, an unfamiliar uncle in need of detox suddenly turns up. Cora uses counting to order and calm things around her, and the constant voice of Brain both shields and isolates her. Her sister, Sunshine, is an exuberant 5-year-old who also keeps Cora grounded in other ways. Treasures--anything dropped near the offshore reef made from abandoned and wrecked vessels--drift into a cove nearby where she hunts with a metal detector in the company of her dad. Patrick, the boy assigned to be her partner at school to help her reestablish some equilibrium, is a wild, awkward extrovert. Brain can't stand him, but his kindness and force of personality win over the lonely Cora. Time references in chapter headings (for example, "24 Minutes Until I Find a Clue") remind readers of her coping strategy of counting minutes to deal with anxiety. Over the course of the novel, Cora confronts inner demons while navigating friendship woes, embarrassment, family drama, and middle school. Main characters are presumably White. The struggles of a young person coping with anxiety will invoke empathy. (Fiction. 9-13)

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April 1, 2021

Gr 4-8-Twelve-year-old Cora's anxiety keeps her locked in constant conversations with her Brain, counting the seconds and minutes in her days, and avoiding other students in her new middle school. Her panic attacks increase after her only friend moves away, and then matters get worse when her long-lost uncle, who has alcoholism, comes into their lives. Cora's one enjoyable diversion is searching for treasures with her metal detector, an activity she shared with her father before his brother showed up and needed his help. When she runs away from school in a panic, her principal assigns exuberant, nerdy and overly friendly Patrick to walk Cora to classes. At first he annoys her and Brain and she resents having a "forced friend," but his enthusiasm and positive attitude, alongside that of her aptly-named five-year-old sister Sunshine, slowly break down her dependence on the negative things that Brain tells her. Cora's well-developed family, with their conflicts and disagreements, is loving and supportive but far from perfect. Cora shows great strength and courage when she finally decides to trust Patrick, and to help him despite Brain's objections; this brave decision helps her finally find her own voice and some new friends. VERDICT With appended facts about pediatric mental health and support contacts, Cora's story, as told in her own words, will elicit empathy and resonate with those who experience anxiety and similar mental health conditions. Recommended.-MaryAnn Karre, Binghamton, NY

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