Between The Lines

Between The Lines

YA fiction
My younger daughter, Katie, and I have been big Jodi Picoult
fans for quite awhile. We've pursued her adult works ever since I was
assigned to read My Sister's Keeper for book club. We value not only
the evocative richness of plot and setting and authenticity of
character, but the compelling ethical issues raised.
I was quite intrigued when I discovered a YA book coauthored by
Picoult and her daughter, Samantha Van Leer, who is a high school
student. Sammy, as her mom calls her, showed a flair for creative
writing quite early in life. One day she came up with an idea for a
YA novel that set the pair on a two year writing project.
"What if the characters in a book had lives of their own after
the cover was closed?...And what if one of these characters
desperately wanted to get out of his book?
Better yet, what if one of his readers fell in love with him and
decided to help?"
Daughter learned about the hard work that goes into writing a
book. Mother discovered that it can be harder to get a teen to focus
in the face of distraction than to motivate her to do housework.
Fortunately they stuck with their self appointed task. They have
created us a universe where characters move enchantingly and
believably between the worlds of realism and fairy tale.
Reading Between The Lines is quite the unique literary
experience even for a veteran bibliophile. I won't do it the
disservice of trying to describe the plot. I wouldn't begin to do it
justice. Take the plunge. You'll be glad you did.
On a personal note, today was the day the Sunday school kids ran the
church service. What a great way for them to show what they've been
learning! They did an excellent job.
A great big shout out goes out to the Orono United Methodist Church
Sunday school kids and their teachers.
Julia Emily Hathaway


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