Skate by Michael Harmon

Skate takes place in Spokane, WA and is about the troubles of a skater-punk kid name Ian. His mother is a drug addict and is never home, so Ian is left to take care of is little brother, Sammy. As you can imagine, this gets very difficult for Ian to deal with and he eventually gets into some trouble at school. He decides to run away to find his father who left them when they were young. He has an address in Walla Walla and that's all he knows about him, but it's his only chance at a normal life. So he and Sammy skate out of town to Walla Walla.

After a long, tiresome, and awful journey they finally make it to Walla Walla to find out that the address they have is from the State Penitentiary.

That's all I'm going to say about the story. You'll just have to read the book to find out what happens :) .

I loved this book. All through the book I was hoping and hoping that things would get better for Ian and as the book progressed things just kept getting worse. He kept making the wrong decisions and I wanted to shake him and say, "don't do that!" But as the book progressed he learned from his mistakes. Ian is basically a good kid who wound up in a bad situation that he had no control over. In the end he learns that he has to face his problems to make his life better. "Skating" away isn't going to work. He has to face his problems head-on.

I highly recommend this book! If you want to find it in the SPL catalog, click here.

Caddy Ever After

I just finished Caddy Ever After by Hilary McKay. It is McKay's fourth books about the unique Casson family. The series starts with Saffy's Angel, then Indigo's Star, and Permanent Rose. Set in England, it is the continuing story of an artistic family with four children. I really love the characters in this series. This particular volume is the story of the events leading up to the wedding of the oldest sister, Caddy. The book is written in first person, with each of the four siblings having a chance to tell their part of the story.

What makes this series work for me is that the characters just seem to come off the page. I've looked forward to each new volume as a chance to visit again with old friends. The family is unconventional, complicated, a little odd even, and their voices draw you into the story, making you want to know more. At the end of each book, I've found myself hoping that their will be another volume. If you are looking for a satisfying read with enjoyable characters, start with Saffy's Angel, and you will find yourself reading all the way through to Caddy Ever After in no time.