Many Stones

Many Stones is by Carolyn Coman. A strange and somewhat depressing character study of a young girl and her relationship with her estranged father. Berry's sister Laura was murdered in South Africa and she and her father are flying there over a year later to dedicate a memorial in her honor. Will they be able to share their grief and rekindle their own relationship? Will Berry be able to sort out her own tangled feelings about Laura's death and the long silence between she and her father? The shared interests Laura had with their father always kept Berry on the outside. Can she learn to cope with her grief, not only regarding Laura's murder, but with her father's desertion? A poignant tale, the ending leaves you wondering whether either Berry or her father have really learned anything about themselves or each other. The workings of Berry's mind are sometimes hard to sort out, but this is only natural under the circumstances. How do you work through this kind of grief and uncertainty?

Ratings: 9th grade - 7 out of 10 - AC (some mature thematic content).