A Month of Mondays

Suze Tamaki was three years old when her mother, Caroline, walked out on the family. Now, 10 years later, Caroline has returned to Victoria, B.C., ready to get to know Suze and her older sister, Tracie. After Caroline left, Tracie and Suze made a pact, promising never to speak to their mother again. Suze is secretly curious about Caroline, but Tracie is holding her to their promise, so Suze keeps her meetings with Caroline a secret. Suze is also balancing problems with friends and at school: Suze keeps getting sent to the office, and her grades are average at best, though Suze’s English teacher sees her potential, moving her into an honors class. Anthony’s (The Right & the Real) characters, both central and secondary, are fully dimensional, and Suze and Caroline’s frustrations are realistically portrayed as they make awkward attempts at a fresh start (such as when Caroline unthinkingly gives Suze a gift basket that includes a bottle of Prosecco). Suze’s dry—borderline sardonic—narration makes for thoroughly entertaining reading as Anthony sympathetically explores the vulnerability of the early teen years. Ages 9–13. [em]Agent: Michael Bourret, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (Mar.) [/em]