I got a note not from a blog reader after I reviewed the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon. The note from Susan Earle said: “Hi Jo — Just read your post and thought I would mention another like book of interest. Ginny Moon is a recent publication by first time author Benjamin Ludwig. It’s the story of a young girl with autism and her struggles to find her “forever home”. The author has a daughter with autism. I chose it for my Book Club and it was well received.”
Well I loved the other book so I quickly checked to see it Ginny Moon was available through Hoopla. It was. I couldn’t have been happier….a book recommendation and I could listen for free. PERFECT!
The better news…I LOVED THE BOOK! It completely lived up to my expectations. The writing is good. I felt like I could better understand how a person with autism thinks. I always love coming of age stories and for Ginny, this was. At times throughout the book I felt like YELLING at the “forever mom”. At times I felt like coaxing Ginny to say just a little more and the adults around her would understand.
Here’s what Amazon had to say:“Ginny Moon is exceptional. Everyone knows it—her friends at school, teammates on the basketball team, and especially her new adoptive parents. They all love her, even if they don’t quite understand her. They want her to feel like she belongs.
What they don’t know is that Ginny has no intention of belonging. She’s found her birth-mother on Facebook, and is determined to get back to her—even if it means going back to a place that was extremely dangerous. Because Ginny left something behind and she’s desperate to get it back, to make things right.
But no one listens. No one understands. So Ginny takes matters into her own hands…
Benjamin Ludwig’s whip-smart, unforgettable novel is an illuminating look at one girl’s journey to find her way home and one of the freshest debuts in years.”
Amazon readers gave the book 4.5 stars. It’s VERY unusual for me but I’m giving this book 5 stars. I completely and totally recommend it. I can’t thank Susan enough for recommending this book. I’d been in much of a book slump lately and have had good ones but not a GREAT book. This one was the GREAT book.
So glad you enjoyed the book Jo! I’ve just put out my list for the upcoming year’s Book Club (I’m a Librarian in Southwestern Ontario) and always enjoy recommending good reads! This summer I am promoting Hoopla’s Book Club Hub — lots of good reads to be found there too!