Young Adult Books

Wenny Has Wings
By: Janet lee Carey


(1.) This book is about a young boy named, Will and his sister named, Wenny. Will and Wenny where walking down the street and got ran over by a truck. Wenny died and went to heaven. Will's heart stopped for 10 minuets. Will said he sped through a dark tunnel when he died. Then we flew around in the sky. After that he said he woke up in the hospital. Will blames he's self for Wenny's death. He thinks there must have been something he could have done so prevent the accident. His parents said to him
"Why did it have to be Wenny?"
Will got very upset because we thought they meant they would rather have him die then Wenny. They meant why Wenny had to die. Will's pastor tells him that when he's angry, he should write letters to god, but Will decides he'd rather write to Wenny, so will writes to Wenny every day, maybe even 2 or 3 times a day. In his writing we talks about many things. Most of the time when Will writes to Wenny he is talking about stuff he did that day and some times he talks about how much he misses Wenny. 50% of the time he writes he is in the hospital trying to get well, so he can go home and go back to school to see all of his friends. When he gets home he is very excited, but that is just until his parents seem very depress. Will thinks that talking about his near-death experience may comfort his and help heal his family, but no one seems willing to listen to him and talk to him about it.

(2.) This book was very exciting to read because you did not know what was going to happen next. For example one of the notes Will wrote to Wenny said, "How much Will wanted to see Wenny. The next thing you know he is saying his mom is pregnant and she is getting ready to have a baby, so they are taking every thing out of Wenny's room and painting the room and putting in stuff for the new baby. The only thing that I really was disappointing was the end of the story. I thought it was disappointing because it just had the last letter and said love Will on it. It did not say anything like I will miss you or I will write to you soon again. It just stopped. I did not really like that.

(3.) I really liked Janet Lee Carey's writing because it's not like a long story where nothing really exciting happens. It is written more like an AIM or like a journal. I really enjoy these kinds of writings because I can relate to them a lot and I really enjoy writing AIM to friends. I have not read any other books by this author but I am soon planning on it.

(4.) If I could rate this book 1-10 I would defiantly rate it a 9. I would rate it a 9 because I really think it is a fantastic book. I would recommend you reading it.

I thought that book was the best book that I have ever read. It was sad when Wenny died because of a truck. And it was just the way the book was made and I could proubly read this book any day. It was just the way the author had wrote the book alot of wondeful details in it and the book was just out standing. It was the the family was falling apart because of when Wenny died it changed everthing and then later through out the book it was like there family was like done the parents have been aruing alot and then at the end of the book well close to it they bacame a better family and Will felt like they were a family agian and the new baby was comming and there parents hated going into wennny room but they had to do it that was going to be the new babys room.Will made sure though to leave some of Wennys things in there for the baby and Will had been trying every thing to tell his parentsd about how he felt when he died and they would just nevr listen to him and will felt like he was just a nobody and he wanted all of that to change well it did and they alll became a great family agian and they were sill pretty happy except for when Wenny died

There is a brother and and a sister named Wenny and Will. Will is older than Wenny! One day they both go walking to the auto part-store to get parts for their derby car,when all of a sudden a truck came out from no-where and hits the two kids, because the brakes went out on his truck.It killed the little girl and broke his leg and ruptured his spleen.While they were operating on him his heart stopped for a whole ten minutes, he claimed he saw the white light. The boy has to stay in the hospital for a while. His mother and father hardley ever stay in the room with Will.His mother is expecting another baby soon the end

This is a great book it tell readers to watch out and be careful when their crossing the road, but also they need to know the whole conversation before they start blaming people for doing stuff.
Will and Wenny were on their way into town to get a part for will cart thing when they got hit by a truck that tried to stop but it just wouldnt. They both died, but when they were dead Will saw Wenny flying ahead of him going to a light person in a big hole in the sky, then will felt a blast of energy and saw his parents in the waiting room while the dockter was reviving him. He woke up a while later with a broken legg and asked his mom if they used the paddle things on Wenny too. It was too much so mom started crying and left the room.Will starts writing letters to Wenny in a blank book that the youth minister gave him, and he gets into a lot of trouble trying to make his parents happy again. Icant tell you any more becouse that would ruin it so your just going to have to get the book.
This book makes readers lauph and cry its a great book you would enjoy it, I DID.

In the beging of the story Wenny and her brother was off to the craft store to get patches for the the scout troops so they can get badges made for the leader and the troop. Wenny's brother didn't like her following him, she never played barbie dolls or baby dolls she just wanted to play with his toys and do the things he wanted to do. One day they were on there way back from the craft store from getting the badges when the truck pop over the hill and the truck hit the 2 kids and there cat's tail. When the guy got out of the truck he notice that the little girl was nearly alive and the boy was atill alive so the boy was sent to the hospital and the cat got token to the vet but the sister died on the way there. The guy who was driving the truck sent him a card that was girly saying I'm sorry that i hit your kids and that i will do anything for to help you and your kid

I have a copy of this book for sale on Amazon.co.uk (Amazon won't allow overseas sellers to list items on Amazon.com). An opportunity to obtain this rare and very popular title!

This book has been republished! I just received the copies I ordered in the mail and they are perfect and beautiful! This is a treasure of a book and now, thanks to Fidra Books - everyone who loves it can afford to have a copy! YAY!!!!

I first checked this book out of my small town library at age 10 or 11. I recall frequently being drawn back to it, and, every time I remembered it and could find it (it was elusive even then, a battered, dusty book with an illegible spine) I would reread it and be spellbound. Suddenly, twenty-five years later, returning to this town with my own children, I one day thought of this book and was unable to get it out of my mind. Unable to remember either title or author but having a vague idea of what the book looked like on the shelf (!), I went to the town library, thinking that I'd recognize it if I were to see it! I have no idea why I was so compelled. In any case, I was unable to find it, and promptly put it out of my mind. Now,several years later, I again am visiting my home town and, for some reason, awoke after midnight last night with the title of the book, Winter of Enchantment, spontaneously occurring to me. After a fast internet search, I found other reviews describing similar experiences. Alas, it is long out of print and not to be found. This story left a lasting impression on me, like no other from my childhood, and I would love to find it once again to share with my own kids. In short, please reprint what is surely a marvelous book!!!

I am 14 right now..and have been looking for this book for 2 years. I read it when I was about 11..and wasn't really interested. I re-read it and fell in love with it..but little did my mom know, she threw the book away a couple months later. I was in complete shock. This book MUST be re-printed!!... IT MUST!!...

Just a note that "Winter of Enchantment" is going to be re-pusblished by Fidra Books, and will be due out in November of 2006. The "House Called Hadlows" is scheduled to be published the following year.

This was an extrordianry book...i fell in love with it..it gave me hopes and dreams about my crush..and how one day, he would soon fall in love with me...it showed me how cliques can hurt, and how much i used to love hanging out with my old friends, before i found my new ones...i just loved this book...

Wonder is about a seventh grader who goes from popular to loser over the summer. She tries to make it through the school year with no friends and her ex-best friend against her. She then shows SCANTA that she isn't bothered by their teasing and gets to be friends with them. Wonder was WONDERful and a very fun book to read.

Jessica and Shelia have been best friends since kindergarden, but everything changes on the first day of seventh grade.I would recommend this book to a girl in the fifth, sixth, or seventh grade. I would also recommend Wonder to a girl who likes to read books about two best friends. Since Shelia is now popular and Jessica is a social outcast, Jessica doesn't think she will ever have friends again. One day jessica becomes popular and shelia becomes the social outcast. The last reason i would recommend this book is because it teaches you a lesson. The lesson is always remmber who your true friends are.

I don't know how I would have survived junior high. "Wonder" is wonderful and an amazing portrait of a girl who goes through, just like most junior high girls, the junior high struggle of losing and gaining friends. I was like Jessica in sixth grade. I was short for twelve. My best friend had left me and I was alone in a world where people changed best friends as often as they did their clothes. I went through sixth grade feeling upset and out of place. Junior high is not an easy time, and that is a fact. In seventh grade, however, I had what Jessica happened to her happen to me. She made new friends and was glad with the fact; I made friends I would never trade with anything. She kept in touch with her old best friend Sheila, saying it'd take some time before they hung out together; I did the same with mine.

"Wonder" changed my life. Will it change yours?

This is my favorite book, and the situations in it are things that happen in real life. I found it easy to relate to some of the characters, and a lot of them reminded me of my friends.I loved the ending, and anyone with major problems at school or with friends should read this book to see that the situation could be much worse.

My love of horses brought me to this book and it didn't dissapoint. The surgery done on Piebald ( the horse) was explained in detail. The old horse was useless to the Circus. They wanted and needed horses who could perform beautiful movements like the "Airs Above The Ground". The old horse is rescued and as in all Mary Stewart books there is a chase, this time along the top of a mansion. MS is intriguing in that she writes in detail. You can smell and feel the circus and everything about it. As always, MS keeps me reading even when I guess the ending.

If you love horses, that makes this book even better. Trust me, you don't need to read a plot summary, this is a great book even though it is nearing 50 years old.

Having read one too many very bad books lately, I went back to one of my favorites. Mary Stewart is one of the original true storytellers of the last generation. Her ability to research and create a in-depth tale of intrigue is amazing.

I can recommend most of her books, including the Merlin series, but AIRS was one of her greatest.

This is the kind of book I can imagine lots of people being sniffy about, cheesily packaged and unashamedly romantic - probably a lot wouldn't even pick it up in the first place. Well that's their loss, but I'd like to get a read-mary-stewart campaign off the ground. She is so good: a deft and clever writer who wears her literary nounce lightly. I adore her stories, her settings and her feisty (but not too feisty!) heroines. No one else is as consistently good: let's hear it for romantic fiction! I've been chastised on the bookwormonthenet blog for offering qualified praise to writers like Mary Stewart and for using phrases like 'pulp fiction' - but no, it is no slur. These are stunning books by a vastly talented writer. I also think film producers ought to be trawling the stewart back catalogue: I can just see Cate Blanchett as the heroine of Airs Above the Ground and the whole sub-plot around the Austrian circus, spies and a lost Lipizzaner stallion would translate fabulously to the wide screen. Go on, someone, do it!

Airs Above the Ground is not quite as compelling in its descriptions and plot as The Gabriel Hounds, My Brother Michael, or This Rough Magic (my favourite); however, it is still a classic Stewart mystery/romance, even if the romance is quite evident from the start. Vanessa March is quite likable and the only Stewart heroine thus far to not have annoyed me just a little bit. My favourite element of the book is the friendship that develops between Vanessa and young Tim Lacy, who is trying to break away from a stifling household and forge a path for himself. As far as the descriptions of exotic locales go, trademark to Stewart, I enjoyed the chase scene through the castle. Airs Above the Ground didn't wow me and I found the ending a bit strange as it didn't feature Annalisa at all..., but all in all, a pleasent read.

I have loved every novel written by Mary Stewart, some more than others. I read this one well over twenty years ago and many times since then. It is one of my many favorite of her books. In her books you get to travel; you feel as if you are really there. I have wanted to visit almost every place I have visited in her books. I too had pledged to see the Lippizaner stallions someday & I finally got to see them a few years ago. They were wonderful of course. There is magic in all the Mary Stewart books; the relationships in this one in particular were warm and appealing.

Alabama moon is a very adventurous tale with lots of facts about the woods. And its so good I got up in the morning and read it until it was bedtime. I rate it 5 stars, my favorite book yet (even better then the golden compass and man was that gooooood.)

This book tells the journey of Moon Blake, who have always lived with his father. But when his father died, he must find a way to escape the outside civilziation and find his home. This novel has an exciting plot, wonderful research, and is a great read. By reading this book, one could also learn the meaning of friendship.

This book is abselutely action-packed, full of adventure and shocking endings (made me cry when I read the shocking ending.) Some parts just makes you want to say "OOHH DDAARRNNIITT! But it's still the best book I have read in my whole entire life! This book is so great, I would give it 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 stars!

My 11 year-old is a reluctant reader, but every now and then a book comes along that keeps his interest even when it is not "reading time". This is one of those books. Moon Blake is a compelling character, having grown up in the woods with his reclusive father. And his story is captivating. He just wants to be left alone to go to Alaska, but he's picked up and taken to a boys home instead. I love how the story evolves, how you see Moon change his ideas of the world, and how he deals with the abusive constable who won't leave him alone.

A terrific book you won't be able to put down.

This book begs for a sequel and soon, too. We--we readers--have to know what happened to Moon and to Hal...What happens to them as they grow, mature, and face their young adult high school and college days? And when they grow up, get married and have families of their own...As they approach old age...Will they, can they, escape (overcome) the events described here in the formative days of their youth. Rarely has a book cried out for a sequel more than this one.

In fact, Mr. Key may have his own cottage industry here, a book on their continuing relationship (Moon and Hal) and/or single books on each boy.
Mark Twain did it and did it well with Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. Mr. Key has the same oportunity here. Here's hoping he's up to the opportunity--not the "task," but the "opportunity."

Orginally written as a book for teens and a little older, Alabama Moon has touched all and stirred the slumbering chords of all generations as it deals with youth, growing, up, family, love and lack thereof.

Outstanding. Don't miss it.

I read this book a few years back, and the only word I can use to describe it is, AMAZING!!!! This may be one of R.L. Stines best pieces of literary work yet. I started reading the first book at nine o'clock pm, and figured I would just finish the rest the next day, and then the second book the day after that, and so on and so forth. No, I stayed up the whole night reading all three books I was that captivated by it. I highly recommend this book, it's also a fun book to read to your siblings.

I loved this book from 6 years ago i havent read it since but i know what its about. The Fier family and the Goode family have it in for each other and the mysterious murders don't even start there.. there are deep dark secrets from hundreds of years before that slowly become unraveled and also become regreted. This is the best Fear Street novel i've ever read and i dont mind reding it over & over.I just can't believe how so many spirits can take over an entire family's lives!!!!!The book is really creepy, & you can sometimes feel like you're there wanting to tell a person to do the right thing.I read it so long ago, & I remember faint details & names but i do recall the strong intensity of the book that didn't let me put it down for days until i finished. I was only eleven but i'm seventen now, and i really have to buy this book again!!!!!!!

i read this book a long time ago and i still love it!!! i would recommend this book to anyone, even if its not your reading level. its so entertaining and you almost feel sorry for both families.

I read this book when I was 13 and became totally enchanted by it. I lost the book, and ended up buying used for $20.00, but when I read it again, I was able to understand and totally wrap myself into it, and read faster than I did before. 19 years old and reading these books, cheap little thrills. I wouldn't reccomend this book to anyone younger than 13 because of the strong violence that occurs. Other than that, if you love the dark-side..read it.

I got this book many years ago, i believe it was close to 6. In that time, ive read this book at least 10 times, this is my absolute favorite book. Even though i read it for the first time in 5th grade, and im now a junior, and my reading level is higher, i still love this book like no other. When i was growing up i went from goosbumps to the older "adolescent" books such as the Fear street books, but this was always my favorite, so much happened in it, and it was just wonderful. I definately suggest it.
I've read it so much, the book litterly is falling apart, and i've lost pages to it :(

I bought "Black Duck" based on the book's description and also based on all the great reviews it has received thus far. I loved the book the entire way through. "Black Duck" is geared for kids ages 9-12 according to the description with the main characters being teenage boys.

I enjoyed how the author intermixes the past with the present in "Black Duck" by making some chapters in the present day and other chapters in the past. Janet Taylor Lisle is able to bring to life what rum-running during the prohibition may have been like on the New England coast in 1929 by using a cast of fictional characters and how prohibition may have effected a community. The story is told through the eyes of Ruben Hart, who was a teenager during 1929.

Currently Ruben Hart is an elderly man. He is approached by a young boy named, David Peterson, whom wants to be a journalist when he grows up. Young David has his sights on writing a story about the the rum-running days and this is where he crosses paths with Ruben Hart. David is set on interviewing Mr. Hart about the rum-running days as he has heard that Mr. Hart knows something about those days. The interview happens over the summer vacation and David learns/hears quite a story from Mr. Hart & quite a tale it is. The two become friends by the end of the novel.

"Black Duck" is a good story with well developed characters!! The story is intriguing and keeps you wanting to know more about what will happen next!!

A year ago three of my sixth graders wanted to read Black Duck, a new book in our school library, for Literature Circles. That was my first experience with the book. I started reading on my way home to Illinois and couldn't stop. Likewise, my sixth graders had a lot of praise for the mystery set in the Prohibition Era. If you parents or teachers are looking for a book that will motivate even the most unwilling reader, this is it. One of the boys confided that although he is a jock, he had to confess he couldn't stop reading it. At first some of the girls were resistant, but soon they, too, had to admit they were hooked. Telling the story in an interview is a unique format. This book also lends itself to a variety of research topics the students enjoyed: Prohibition, the Great Depression, the Roaring 20s, Women's Suffrage, politics, gangs, gansters, Rhode Island, the East Coast, and of course bootlegging and smuggling. What a great way to learn some history! I highly recommend it.

The Black Duck is a real page turner that keptme reading.This shows how a friendship that was so strong can end up in the end so bad and how a boat can be an inspiration. This historical fiction book is about Ruben and Jeddy, who are best friends find a naked leg on the beach. Then in the man's pocket is a half of a fifty dollar bill. They each don't no what that means. Ruben doesn't want to report it to the police, while Jeddy wants to turn it in. While this is happenig rum smuggling is taking place and Ruben wants to find out who did this. This is making there friendship go bad. This is a great book for people who like boats and action. I highley recommend getting this book.

The Black Duck was my favorite and only book I've ever read. The Black Duck was a book full of action and is also a mystery based book. It was a story about old time gansters, that were smuggling alcohol by a boat called the Black Duck. At a time where alcohlo was illegal in the US. It was also about a man trying to write a story on the Black Duck incident that happened 40 years ago. He also interviewed the only surviver of the Black Duck. IT was A thrilling book even for someone who hates to read! I will always choose a book like this to read. I give this book a 5 star review, it was amazing!

The story starts when Ruben Hart and his friend Jeddy McKenzie find a dead body along the beach in a business suit. They search him and find a pipe and a tobacco pouch. The man is wearing a fancy golden watch which Jeddy and Ruben find odd because there is not really ant big business around in there town. The man was shot in the neck when the observed him so obviously some one was after him. Since Jeddy's dad is police chief the police tell them to stay away from the body. The next day Ruben and Jeddy went to check if the body was still there, but it was gone. There were no footprints, the tide was to low last night for a boat to steal the body. The boys start guessing what happened to the body and eventually figure that a plane must've come and stolen the body. They start wondering why someone would steal a body and decide to ask old Tom Morrison. Tom was one of the best fishermen until one day he crashed his boat, he decided to join another crew, but then he got his eye caught on a fishhook. So Tom now lived in a shack down by the beach people usually see him hunting for blue crabs. They go to tom house and ask him if he has seen a plane land around on the beach. Ruben notices that Tom is wearing a fancy golden watch the one that was one the body! So they ask again and Tom decides to answer he said that the had been a plane that landed by the body the men that came out checked if the body was still alive, shot him, laughed, shot him some more, and then stole the body. When leaving they heard a boat landing on the beach and hid in the sand dunes. After about a minute they heard a dog yelp and a gun shot. They went to see if he was alright and his dog was shot. This is the most I will tell you for now I recommend this book for 6th grade to about 9th this was one of the bets books I ever read.

This is a really fun book that everyone can enjoy. There are a lot of hidden meanings. The author makes you feel in the end that how you make money is probably just as or even more important than how much you make. I think this is a book for every one.

SO AWESOME!!!!!!!!!
I love this book! It is so awesome. Singh really leaves you hanging. You never know what will jump out at you next.

You wanna laugh, don't miss this one. I don't know about what the others are talking about, I didn't get any deep meanings out of this. But what I did get was great entertainment. get this one for your collection. Also nice to add to your collection are: Aesop for Children (Winter), Grimm's complete fairy tales (Grimm), Great Children's stories (Richardson). There are many other great children's books out there, but these were the ones I enjoyed the most. Oh, and I almost forgot the two classics that no children should ever be deprived of: The Little Prince (Exupery) and Charlotte's Web (White).

A brilliant story of contemporary philosophy which draws upon fable, fairy tale, and mythology-as well as modern aesthetic and mathematical thought. Even more brilliant is the style in which it was written, a literary equivalent to Cubism with all sorts of pleasant repetitions and poetic phrases. If Picasso had been a writer, I imagine him writing something like this, although he probably would have stayed away from caterpillars and butterflies, especially pink and blue ones.

The only writer who has made me laugh and cry in the same book. It can be slow at times,but trust me, stick with it! I have recommended it to many others who have told me how they laughed out loud and even cried in cafes, getting a whole lot of other people interested in the book. Now I see why so many people are enjoying and talking about what is but a simple tale of a caterpillar searching for its food plant. I think my only problem with the book is that the author didn't give the caterpillar a name. I think this bothered a lot of people. Poor thing needs a name. Instead she is always referred to as THE BRAVE LITTLE CATERPILLAR. It's tedious and tiring and I wish he had given her a name, any name, couldn't have been that hard. Personally I would have named her. But that's not reason enough to bash a book that has won the heart of so many young Asians. And if great art bears true witness to an experience, I think Singh has quite honestly captured the ambitions and anxieties, the experience, of second generation American Asians, be they Indian, Korean, or Japanese. Myself I had a dad who ever since I was a child would sneak into my room while I was sleeping and whisper, in my ear, 'Doctor, doctor, I want to be a doctor,' in a sad and futile hope to subliminally mold my dreams and desires. But when he saw that wasn't working, it was sort of forced upon me and sadly this was for his own ego. So now for his ego I truly believe I'm wasting my time studying something I really don't want to be studying. But, slowly but surely, I'm summoning up the courage to leave the 'Silk Palace' and pursue my 'food plant' whatever it may be. I admittedly don't know yet. But that's more because I regrettably let someone else define my life. In writing this, I see and feel how powerful this book is and I look forward to anything else this author has to say.

I have been a fan of Prosek since his Trout days. This introspective book helped me to understand his precocious talent for observation and drawing and his need to get out on the stream. I wish him well.

The Day My Mother Left beautifully captures the agony and the pathos of an adolescent abandoned by his mother. The novel includes a myriad of conflicts that are typically found in realistic contemporary fiction. We see the conflict of person vs. person with the main character dealing with his father, mother and the school bully. The main conflict; however, is between Jeremy, the protagonist, and himself. His unresolved issues with the divorce, his mother leaving and offering no communication and his burgeoning artistic talent contribute most to the overall theme of the novel: beauty and love can grow from struggles and pain. Each character is round and dynamic; the major characters in this story evolve and change subtly as time progress in the novel. One of the highlights of the book is how the author reveals these character changes. The book is told through the eyes of Jeremy, an early adolescent. His self-centeredness only shows the other characters flaws and transformations when Jeremy finally sees them. Prosek reveals his characters and themes so movingly and realistically. This novel will appeal to late middle school students and up.

Nine-year-old Jeremy has a close relationship with his mother. She goes to every one of his baseball games, cheering him on from the bleachers. Jeremy gets teased for her enthusiastic encouragement, but he doesn't care. The bond they share is special. In fact, she is the only one to whom he has ever shown his collection of bird drawings. But when she abandons the family, Jeremy's world shatters into a million painful pieces.

It starts with an argument about her excessive drinking, the fact that Jeremy's father isn't making enough money, her crazy behavior at the fancy dinner party, his lack of attention, and especially about her seeing another man --- the father of Jeremy's rival, Rick. The two of them met at one of Jeremy and Rick's baseball games. Somewhere in the middle of it all, Jeremy's mom decides to leave and be part of a different family, one that doesn't include Jeremy.

Jeremy's older sister responds by escaping in her car for work and friends, while their father becomes imprisoned in his own despair. Jeremy must decide for himself how to put the pieces back together. Recreating his collection of bird drawings is the first step, since his mom took the old one with her. Jeremy finds comfort in the birds, in mirroring their beauty, in tromping through their wooded habitat. He also takes an art class to improve his talents and meets a girl named Casey.

Over the next three years, Jeremy continues to struggle with the fact that his mother abandoned him and never even called him on the phone, much less paid him a visit. But life continues, with even more obstacles to overcome, such as his dad remarrying and his beloved uncle getting sick. Jeremy learns to wade through the tough times without overloading his heart of bitterness. He even manages to say a prayer for Rick when he needs an operation. But will he ever be able to forgive his mom for leaving him?

James Prosek has created a beautiful story that all ages, genders and races will enjoy. He has an obvious love of nature, which shines through in his vivid descriptions of feathers, fish and forests. His novel's voice is precise and rare, nailing perfectly Jeremy's preteen character enduring pain and grief. Jeremy's spirit will inspire us all to be better people.

--- Reviewed by Chris Shanley-Dillman

I first became aware of James Prosek through his artistic and literary treatments of fly fishing and thought I would give The Day My Mother Left, his first fictional effort, a go. I am so glad I did--what a wonderful little book! Though it is intended for young adults, as a mature reader I found it very engaging.

This autobiographical novel is a very candid picture of a difficult time in Prosek's, and his protaganist's, life. Prosek tells his touching story beautifully and without remorse. I would liken this book to Angela's Ashes in its portrayal of an unbalanced family and their troubles in a voice that does not blame but instead finds grace in the struggle. In the case of Prosek, his gravitation to art and nature provides ballast and equanimity; he shows us an inner journey enabled by his exploration of the natural world. And it is a damn good story. . .

Yale-educated James Prosek is clearly an extremely gifted and multi-dimensional creative talent. I know of few other YA books that tell such a story of charm and tenderness from the male point of view. I highly recommend it!

Jeremy's mother has often been disappearing for hours at a time, but on a Sunday afternoon all truths are told.

His mother has found a new love - the father of Jeremy's enemy at school and on the baseball field. A fight occurs between Jeremy's mother and father. His mother leaves, and she takes everything with her - including Jeremy's Book of Birds that he had been illustrating himself.

No one can believe that she left. Especially Jeremy. He feels abandoned and hurt. Through his father's sadness and his own mixed-up feelings, Jeremy recreates the Book of Birds and finds solace within himself through nature.

James Prosek's THE DAY MY MOTHER LEFT is very moving. Coming from a divorced family myself, it's easy to relate and understand Jeremy's feelings. Mr. Prosek uses outstanding details within the story and has also created lovely drawings. It is a great book and experience from beginning to end.

Reviewed by: Jeremey