The Memory Wall

Unable to cope with his mother’s early-onset Alzheimer’s, a boy finds solace in the latest installment of his favorite video game, Wellhall, a complex fantasy world with uncanny parallels to his real life. While his mother accepts her fate, checking into a home where she can receive care, Nick researches other diseases, certain that she can be cured. And as he plays Wellhall, he meets a character that he suspects to be his mother, granting him hope that she’s playing the game as well. Nick’s struggle to accept his mother’s condition interweaves with his online quest, though not always as he expects. Rosen (Woundabout) crafts a complex, emotional story about grief and acceptance, but it’s somewhat diluted by the other subplots at play (Nick is also dealing with bullies, his biracial background, and a nascent romantic interest, and a major theme of the narrative invokes the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall). Even so it’s a strong, thought-provoking novel. Ages 9–12. Agent: Joy Tutela, David Black Literary. (Sept.)