There is a reason books are turned into films—a life was transformed in the reading, and someone wanted to share that experience with others. This book is fabulous. It‘s classified as a YA novel, but my life is richer for having read the book. August Pullman has been dealt a difficult hand in life, and he has never experienced a traditional educational experience. His choice to attend school helps to educate others. Kindness matters.

This is not my kind of book. The plot was buried in subtext, and I'm sure the book could have been a chapter long had the author written in third person. I wanted to climb out of the protagonist's head to just find out where the story was going. I found myself skimming just to expedite the pace. The narrator did not endear me to her, and I found myself profoundly saddened by her negativity and disappointment in life. #24in48

"But do you know this idea of the imaginary homeland? Once you set out from shore on your little boat, once you embark, you‘ll never truly be at home again. What you‘ve left behind exists only in your memory, and your ideal place becomes some strange imaginary concoction of all you‘ve left behind at every stop.” #24in48

Fabulous! Taking place in the 1940's, the book's protagonist is a young, Jewish, Italian teenager who has escaped to America during the war. She finds acceptance and solace with a Catholic, Italian family from Philly who are her neighbors at the shore. The four brothers include Addie,and she soon learns that being part of a big family can hold dear memories and haunting episodes that one cannot escape--no matter how far one tries to run.

It was an interesting premise. Finding the bone box of Jesus? And a letter he had written? Fascinating. On the other hand, it made me uncomfortable.

I didn't love the writing. I liked some of the characters, but many lacked depth. At points I could not wait to turn the page, and there were other times where I could have set the book down forever.

I would not compare this book to The DaVinci Code as some have done.