Written by Tracey Neithercott, this book follows Ruby as she ventures out of her comfort zone to full fill her sisters dying wish – that she goes on a treasure hunt.
I really liked this book, and I didn’t think that I would. If you have ever read A Prayer for Owen Meany, this writing style reminds me of that. And I wonder if one character wasn’t inspired by that book.
This book isn’t a realism book, this is a bit whimsical in the background of the characters. One girl doesn’t sleep. Literally. Ever.
Kids, don’t try to do that. But it works for this book.
There is also death that is dealt with, and it’s done in a such a way that I think this would be a great book to analysis as a high school or college novel, but it might be a little tough for the young kids. Middle schoolers could enjoy this, but parents I would recommend reading this with your kids. Scroll to the bottom section underneath the spoilers to see why.
The writing is just beautiful, and the characters have such depth and reflect real life so much. This is a book that shows both the typical teenager, and what makes each person unique. And, I enjoy that all of the girls were a little odd. And I enjoyed the two character story telling. I guess part of the ending, but the other part did startle me. Completely.
Fans of mystery, adventure, growth, and just a good book will enjoy this novel.
SPOILERS
Okay, why do I think parents of younger readers should do a little research before reading this book?
How they handle death.
What caught and kept my attention was the fact that the main character does a sympathy kill for her sister who is dying from cancer. In the first chapter.
We pick up a year later and she has faded into the background until she finds the map to treasure. From there the story goes running. We have the three boys, Gabe and Elliot and Charlie, and Anne, the other girl. All with odd backgrounds and all with so much personality.
The other reason you might want to be wary? We already went over the spoilers bit, yeah?
Gabe dies. And it is sudden, and it hurts, yet…. they move on from it really easily. This main character, who for the longest time I thought would get with Ruby, dies. Just, dead.
Still love this book and recommend it to everyone!
