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207 pp.
| Bloomsbury
| April, 2020
|
Trade
ISBN 978-1-5476-0123-3
$16.99
|
Ebook
ISBN 978-1-5476-0125-7
(
2)
4-6
Twelve-year-old Cassie is having trouble coping with her mother's early-onset Alzheimer's disease--first, because she's sad, especially when her mom no longer remembers her name, and second, because her dad's approach is to keep his wife home both for safety and to hide her condition from public view. Cassie spends much of the time taking care of Mom and focusing on math homework--with its clearly right and wrong answers--which means no time for soccer with former best friend Bailey and no inspiration for the art projects she used to love. After a particularly bad day, Cassie decides to make one thing on her formerly adventurous mother's bucket list happen: swimming with dolphins. The trip from Arizona to San Diego is not without problems, but it's also a crucial bonding moment and helps the family to move forward with accepting its loss. Cassie is an engaging narrator, and her father, who is clearly trying his best but is just as clearly misguided, makes an excellent foil. While this is an emotional book, Cassie is extremely self-contained, and her sadness is presented with restraint. The delivery of the book's art and math themes is effective without being heavy-handed and helps unify the story. A good choice for kids looking for a quiet but emotionally intense read.