Carey (Molly's Fire) brings a new approach to a familiar story line in this often heartrending novel, conveyed as a series of letters written by 11-year-old Will to his younger sister, who was killed in an accident that Will only barely survived. Will begins by relating his near-death experience and the peace he felt when he and Wenny were "zooming around up there in that bright light." But Will's attempts to talk about that experience are waylaid by misunderstandings with his parents and by his father's deepening depression. As he tries to deal with the loss, grief and guilt—with being "stuck down here... on the outside of heaven"—Will also feels comforted by his certainty of Wenny's happy afterlife. While Carey sometimes strikes an overly sentimental chord, her characterizations are generally precise and poignant in their accuracy. For example, Will teams up with a classmate to try contacting Wenny via séances and helium balloons; elsewhere, he doesn't understand why his mother gets so upset when he bakes a cake for Wenny's birthday. The unusual trim size (5"×6½") may help attract readers' attention, and the intriguing and well-developed premise will likely sustain it. Ages 8-12. (July)
