Ashes to Asheville

When 12-year-old Fella’s biological mother, Mama Lacy, becomes sick with cancer, her family moves from Asheville, N.C., to small-town West Virginia to be closer to relatives. After Mama Lacy’s death, Fella’s other mother, Mama Shannon, falls into depression, and Mama Lacy’s mother, Mrs. Madison, wins custody of Fella, separating her from Mama Shannon and Fella’s 16-year-old sister, Zany. Zany’s furtive plan to grant Mama Lacy’s final wish by scattering her ashes near their old home drives the novel. Sneaking their mother’s urn from Mrs. Madison’s mantle, the girls embark on a madcap nighttime road trip, which takes one surprising turn after another. Their car overheats, a teenage thief steals the urn, and they end up hitchhiking with him (and later “borrowing” his truck). Dooley (Free Verse) skillfully balances the troubling story of a family torn apart with Fella’s lively, humorous narrative: “We’re either going to go to jail or get in trouble with Mrs. Madison—and I am not sure which is worse.” When Mama Shannon and Mrs. Madison join forces to find the girls, possibilities for a new family configuration offer hope in this moving, entertaining, and thought-provoking tale. Ages 10–up. (Apr.)

This review has been corrected to properly reflect the custody situation referred to in the second sentence.