Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Keeping the Night Watch




This book, by Hope Anita Smith, tells the story of a family where the dad has "walked out" on the family, but has returned. The story, told in verse, is from the perspective of CJ, the oldest child in the book. CJ is trying to understand why his father had left the family and is trying to adjust to his father's reappearance. Without being over-the-top, we see the how this family has been altered by this change and that reunion is not as simple as having everyone together at the dinner table. While this book is a quick read, it is nuanced enough to stay in the mind for awhile. Anyone who has been subjected to a major change as a result of someone else's actions could relate to the book. I give it a thumbs up.

1 comment:

Librarykat said...

I thought that this book read rather young, except for the mention of lingerie later in the book. I also didn't like that we never got to know why the father left or what made him come back. I vote nay.