Olive's Ocean CD

Rating:
Summary: A Bittersweet Slice of Life
Review: When Martha hears the tragic news about the death of Olive, a shy girl in her class, she is astonished to discover Olive's unspoken wish to be her best friend. As Martha is haunted by the friendship she never had, her family plans their annual summer vacation to visit Martha's strong and intelligent grandmother, Godbee.
This is one book for kids where the adult characters are just as complex and interesting as the children are. Godbee and Martha's mother and father have conflicts and issues that play out in the margins of Martha's narration. This perspective makes the family very realistically drawn.
Martha and her brother hang out with the neighbor boys, and Martha develops her first crush. While the plot seems to lose direction after he betrays her by videotaping their poignant first kiss (the Olive thing really never goes anywhere), Henkes still keeps readers compelled with his detailed evocation of Martha's inner emotional life, the family's love for each other, and her relationship with Godbee.
Don't read this book for the plot, read it for the memories and feelings it will evoke of summer vacation, first crushes (and first heartbreak) and the bittersweet first awareness of how short life is.