First sentence: Today is the first day of school, and it's gonna be fantastic. I think this as I sit on the toilet in the second-floor bathroom of the Village Arts Academy in New York City, looking at a page in my tiny journal with a list of things to say to all my new classmates.
Premise/plot: "El" is the narrator of Paul Mosier's second novel, Echo's Sister. (She hates her given name, LAUGHTER.) She's twelve and having a bit of a rough time--starting a new school, trying to make new friends, to find her place to fit and belong. But this isn't really that novel. Her perspective changes quite a bit after she learns her younger sister, Echo, has cancer. Talk about a BEFORE and AFTER. Will life ever be the same again? Would she really want it to?
My thoughts: I loved, loved, loved his first book, Train I Ride. I loved this one too. I loved spending time with El's family. I loved the focus on family and friends. I loved how El's new friend was really there for her. I loved the hope. This isn't a happy-happy carefree book. It has substance. But it isn't a sad sob story either. Like life itself--it's balanced.
© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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