Review by Booklist Review
Heartbroken Nora needs to get away to someplace the air is clean and unweighted by loss, so she takes off for Camp Cradle Rock, where she will be a counselor for the summer, specializing in arts and crafts. There she is embraced by the sisterhood of fellow counselors Kala, Withers, Gilly, Tex, and Mezzo. Hoping to leave the past behind, she embraces who she wants to be, taking on a "camp name" and two dozen 13-year-old girls--The Ravens. Together, campers and counselors bond over a few short weeks, sharing joys and pains: missing home and boyfriends, walking to the bathroom after dark, periods, a horseback riding accident, and an eating disorder. Written in verse, the text nicely captures experiences that will resonate with readers familiar with sleepaway camp and is beautifully illustrated with portraits of characters and glimpses of scenes from Nora's days. Occasionally Nora comes off as a bit dramatic, but not more than a typical fictional 17-year-old. Based on the author's own experience working for three summers at an all-girls camp, this sweetly melancholic novel is tinged with nostalgia.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
VanSickle (How to Decorate a Christmas Tree) paints a portrait of a classic mid-aughts summer camp in this slice-of-life verse novel. It's summer 2006 and 17-year-old Nora Nichols finds herself employed as a counselor at Camp Cradle Rock, an all-girls outdoors program nestled in the Blue Mountains of West Virginia, where she's one of six teen girls tasked with wrangling a gaggle of 13- year-olds. Quintessential summer camp staples such as friendship bracelets, rousing games of Never Have I Ever, heaps of boy talk, and living at the mercy of the weather feature throughout. Woven in between vignettes depicting prank wars, horseback riding, and sun tanning is a subtle exploration of healing from heartbreak, navigating body shame, and the strength that one can find in community, as evidenced by the titular Lightning Circle campfire tale: "At this point/ Kala leads us/ in forming/ a Lightning Circle/ of our own./ Six women,/ twelve hands,/ and the feeling that passes/ from hand to hand/ is something like/ electricity." Sparse, exacting verse pairs well with Watson's soft, sketchy line drawings in charcoal gray and sage green, which render the natural world, tidbits of camp life, and characters whose skin tones reflect the white of the page. Ages 12--up. (Mar.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Seventeen-year-old Canadian camp counselor Nora Nichols' boyfriend has broken up with her right before her arrival at the all-girls Camp Cradle Rock in West Virginia. The "wounds / are still tender," and Nora is hoping to leave everything behind, concentrate on getting to know her fellow counselors, and embark on "a fresh start." Sitting in the Lightning Circle, a tradition inspired by a legendary camp story that builds a connection between the six young women counselors, Nora finds self-love and healing from the pain of unrequited love and rejection. The interconnectedness that "passes / from hand to hand" in their circle is metaphorically compared to the "electricity" of lightning. This story in journal form emphasizes sisterhood. In the poem "The Recovery Position," one counselor reveals an eating disorder. The counselors support the younger campers with their own concerns--homesickness, fitting in socially, getting a first period. The free-verse poetry's accessible diction speaks to teenage voices and is punctuated with nature imagery, symbolism, and details that vividly and nostalgically recall traditional camp experiences, from fingers that are "sticky from sucking on watermelon rinds" to "dancing barefoot in the grass." Nora writes about shells, mountains, rivers, trees, and horses, and each poem is accompanied by beautiful illustrations, including portraits of the campers and images of everyday objects and flora and fauna. Ultimately, Nora movingly reflects on the perspective she's gained from "this magical space." Characters largely read white. An inviting take on feminine wisdom and the power of collective self-transformation. (Verse fiction. 12-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
