Sparrow Road (MG)
In the shadowed glow of headlights the old pink house looked huge, rambling like the mansions on Lake Michigan. A fairy tale tower rose high above the roof. The pillared front porch sagged.
Raine, our heroine, did NOT want to spend the summer living at Sparrow Road, a private retreat for artists. But her mom has taken a job there--as cook--and that's the end of that. No amount of whining will change that. Soon after her arrival she learns how very, very strict the rules are. The NO-TALKING rule seems especially harsh--and it's in fact most of the day, six days a week. There's also no TV, no Internet, no phones. So what's a girl to do?
Raine charms many (though not all) of the artists at Sparrow Road. A few really befriend her and support and encourage her. Raine learns the secret history of the place. How Sparrow Road was an orphanage for many, many years. She sees the attic where the boys slept--sees the remnants of that past, that existence. And what she sees makes her curious and inspired...
She decides to write a story told from the perspective of one of the orphan boys....
And that is just part of this one. For Raine has some growing of her own to do. Her mom took the job for a very, very important reason. A potentially life-changing reason...
I liked this one. I did. I thought it was a very good book. I liked the characters. I really loved some of them actually! I thought the story was very sweet, very moving.
© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Category Article 2011, J Fiction, J Realistic Fiction, library book
