Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, a quiet first-chair clarinetist, grapples with the sudden death of her charismatic older sister, Bailey. In the wake of this loss, Lennie finds herself tangled in a messy romantic triangle. She shares a grief-stricken bond with Toby, Bailey’s grieving boyfriend, while simultaneously falling for Joe Fontaine, a wildly talented new musician who brings jazz and joy back into her life. Throughout the story, Lennie scrawls poems and musical notations on scraps of paper, leaving them tucked into trees and scattered across the small town of Clover, California, as she navigates the physical absence of her best friend and the complexities of her own awakening heart.
Readers who enjoy character-driven young adult fiction will find a detailed portrayal of how mourning alters domestic life and creative expression. The book appeals to musicians and writers who value stories where art functions as a primary language for processing internal conflict. The reader gains a realistic perspective on the confusion of experiencing desire and guilt at the same time. The narrative demonstrates that recovery from loss is not a linear progression but a chaotic series of choices between retreating into the past and participating in the present.
Inward-looking and clear-cut; an easy read.
Best for readers like The Empathetic Explorer. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2010
- Language
- EN
