Category: Coming Of Age

At sixteen, Billie Weinstein has plenty of problems: She’s the only Jewish girl living in the all-Italian neighborhood of West Berry, NJ; she’s trying hard to please her know-it-all father who listens to opera at full volume and drives full speed, and her too-accommodating mother who is either taking care of Billie’s father, or Billie and her sister, or the two dogs; and on top of everything else, her older sister Cassie goes off to college, leaving Billie to fend for herself.

And now Billie’s studying for the SATs. The task her father has given her is to learn twenty words a day, read the New York Times at least twice a week and watch Masterpiece Theatre whenever he tells her to, mostly because he likes it. Then Billie discovers her sister’s secret: Cassie is battling anorexia and Billie’s parents excuse Cassie’s weight loss as stress due to the competitive atmosphere at college. Billie knows something is drastically wrong with her sister; something that could be fatal.

This novel is touching and funny and moving, and it got great reviews. And Billie Weinstein is so wry and humorous a protagonist, she’s the kind of girl every woman wishes she’d had as a best friend growing up.

( Courtesy of GoodReads,   258 pages )

This memoir by the prize-winning Canadian children’s author invites comparison with Beverly Cleary’s recent A Girl from Yamhill. But, even though both authors started writing at early ages and both loved to read, partly to shield themselves from pain, they led profoundly different lives. Born nearly blind in 1932 (among other visual impairments, her eyes were crossed), Little was ostracized by classmates and longed for a close friend. Fortunately, her parentsmedical doctorswere attentive and well-informed about her condition but careful not to be too protective. In high school, Little began “sorting out when and whether belonging really mattered,” a theme that has nearly universal appeal. This is one of the better children’s books about becoming a writer, but it is also a poised account of growing up with a disability, and no line separates the two. Little makes a gift of herself to readersfunny, spirited and whole.

( Courtesy of Publishers Weekly,   233 pages )

Icy Sparks is the sad, funny and transcendent tale of a young girl growing up in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky during the 1950’s. Gwyn Hyman Rubio’s beautifully written first novel revolves around Icy Sparks, an unforgettable heroine in the tradition of Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird or Will Treed in Cold Sassy Tree. At the age of ten, Icy, a bright, curious child orphaned as a baby but raised by adoring grandparents, begins to have strange experiences. Try as she might, her “secrets”—verbal croaks, groans, and physical spasms—keep afflicting her. As an adult, she will find out she has Tourette’s Syndrome, a rare neurological disorder, but for years her behavior is the source of mystery, confusion, and deep humiliation.

Narrated by a grown up Icy, the book chronicles a difficult, but ultimately hilarious and heartwarming journey, from her first spasms to her self-acceptance as a young woman. Curious about life beyond the hills, talented, and energetic, Icy learns to cut through all barriers—physical, mental, and spiritual—in order to find community and acceptance.

( Courtesy of GoodReads ,  paperback  308 pages )