Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool
Jack's mother dies so his dad, the captain of a WWII navy ship, comes home to Kansas. Jack and his father have not seen one another in several years, so things are strange. Jack's dad takes him to a boarding school relatively close to his base. Jack finds it difficult to fit in since he had not ever seen the ocean before he arrived in Maine and all students are expected to skull. The first boy Jack meets is Early who seems quite odd. He lives by himself in the basement. Early has no family left and he seems to be a charity case at the school. His oddness draws Jack in and they begin a quest that Jack does not really understand. It is a quest to find a bear, or maybe it is find Early's brother (everyone knows that he died in the war) all based on the story that Early reads in the number pi.
This historical fiction book is a good one. Everything turns out right. The details Vanderpool includes and the story she weaves is enjoyable, poignant and just right.
--MS
Comments