BOOKS

Our oh-so-fab GL book reviewer Kim Childress has a few extra reviews, just for you!

How I Saved My Father’s Life, by Ann Hood
Scholastic Press, $17

Madeline may have performed a miracle and saved her father’s life, but maybe it was Mom who needed help. She obviously needed something. Otherwise Dad wouldn’t have left. If Mom tried harder she could write a bestseller like Dad, and they’d move to New York instead of Mom’s old family shack. Maybe Madeline could live with Dad and his classy new wife. Or maybe, the dreaded trip to Italy might set Madeline straight.

Grow, by Juanita Havill
Peachtree Publishers, $13

When big, old Berneetha decides to plants some blooms in their less-than-booming neighborhood, everyone thinks she’s bonkers, except for twelve-year-old Katie. Seed-by-seed, they transform the tiny vacant lot and cultivate some surprising gardeners, like “Graffiti gangster” Harlan, who turns out to be great with a tiller. Soon enough, disaster looms, but this previously distant community comes together in an unexpected way.

Undercover, by Beth Kephart
HarperCollins, $17

Elisha has a poetic heart and a talent with words, which is why her classmates have her “ghostwrite” love notes. When Theo asks for verses to court his crush, he also strikes up an unexpected friendship with Elisha, drawing her out of her invisibility. Unfortunately, jealousy has its own brand of cruelty, and Elisha must choose to rise or remain forever undercover.  

5/17/2008 9:08:00 AM