Overview

Every year, twelve-year-old Michael looks forward to his summer visit to his grandparents? farm, to the sights and sounds of the country that always make him feel so alive, and especially to spending time with his grandfather. When Grandpa dies suddenly right before Michael's visit, the loss hits Michael hard. It seems as if nothing is going right in his life right now: his dad is always working on his dissertation and has no time for Michael, and, when school starts, his math teacher seems to hate him and his best friends are never around. About the only thing that makes him feel better is picking up his sketchbook and pencil and drawing. Michael begins taking private art lessons with Charlie Andrews, a retired art teacher, and the two become friends. But then Michael learns that Charlie might be dying, too.
This is a touching first novel about a sensitive boy's struggle to work through his grief and let people into his life again. As Graham Salisbury pointed out, it provides ?excellent comfort to any young reader dealing with the frailty of life.?

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9780374399351

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Reviews

You'll care for Michael, grieve over his losses and love the people he loves. A warm, satisfying book, one you won't forget. --Patricia Reilly Giff, author of Pictures of Hollis Woods <br> Of all human emotions grief for the loss of a loved one may be the most profoundly felt and the most difficult to confront for people of any age. To a sensitive youngster it can be a life altering experience. Cynthia Cotten takes on such a challenge and in her illuminating new novel she guides her young hero (as well as the reader) in compassionate and constructive ways to face the passing of a loved one. This is a valuable book. I was deeply moved. --Earl H. Hamner, Jr., author of Spencer's Mountain and the creator of the television series The Waltons <br> <br> This thoughtful, well-written novel would be an excellent comfort to any young reader dealing with the frailty of life. The fact that I found myself standing in the narrator's shoes, becoming him, learning to live with his loss and finding hope, is a testament to Cynthia Cotten's skill as a writer. I enjoyed this gem of a story very much. --Graham Salisbury, author of Eyes of the Emperor An excellent book for discussion. -- Booklist [An] earnest, welcome example of realistic middle-grade fiction. - Kirkus Reviews Touching and accurate in its portrayal of the grieving process. -- School Library Journal The subject is a poignant one. -- The Bulletin for the Center of Children's Books

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