Flightsend ReviewCharlie was about to begin a whole new life when she and her mother moved into an old cottage called Flightsend. Her mother sees this as an opportunity to start fresh after all that has gone so tragically wrong. This young adult novel by Linda Newbery, expresses feelings of love and family, confusion and distress, and hate and happiness. Charlie would soon find out whether moving to this cottage was going to make things better or worse. Before moving, Charlie's mother was in a relationship with a man named Sean, that was several years younger than her. To them, the age difference didn't matter because Sean was a very kind, caring, and genuine man that Charlie formed a very close bond with. Charlie's mom, Kathy, tried to have a baby with Sean but unfortunately the baby died during the pregnancy. After that, Kathy pushed Sean out of her life and she was going through a lot of depression. That was when she decided to move to Flightsend. There, Kathy took up gardening and Charlie began working at a place called Nightingales. This was a place where many tutors gathered to teach students about subjects like art, math, drawing, and many other things. The owners of Nightingales was a couple with a young daughter named Rosie. She reminded Kathy of her baby Rose, which she lost during pregnancy. Charlie was always very upset with her mother for pushing Sean out of her life because he seemed like the perfect husband and father. Charlie could not understand why her mother was always trying to ignore Sean and not take him back. Charlie's certain that not taking Sean back will make everything worse, but she couldn't be more wrong. The First summer at Flightsend turned out to be really nice and proves to be a turning point for both Charlie and her mother. In the beginning, Charlie was not too happy about moving to Flightsend. However, while she began working at Nightingales, she made new friends and looked forward to going their everyday. She noticed that her mother was no longer depressed and was actually beginning to enjoy life a bit more. As long as her mother was happy, that's all that mattered. Charlie also found a dog and ended up keeping him. One day when she took out Caspar, her dog, she came upon an old aircraft facility. She actually ended up seeing a small plane land and a tall man came out. His name was Dietmar and he was from Germany. He actually used to live in Flightsend until he moved back to Germany. Charlie showed Dietmar around town and introduced him to her mother. Kathy began spending more time with him and told Charlie that she really liked him. So, would this mean Sean was no longer in her life and Kathy was starting a new beginning? "Flightsend" by Linda Newbery was overall a good book. The big idea was that a mother was getting over the fact that she dumped her boyfriend of many years and tried to escape her depression by moving away, leaving herslef and her daughter trying to start fresh and to enjoy themselves in a new home and town. I felt very sorry for Charlie because she had to watch her mother go through so much pain and grief, but then again, she progressively got better and both Charlie and her mother were beginning to really like Flightsend and accept that it was home. This book deals a lot with a mother and daughter relationship and how their different lives and opinions affect one another. "Flightsend" was easy to read and understand. I rated this book three stars because there were a few moments in the book that I felt were unnecessary and didn't really fit into the big picture of what the book was about, like for example when Charlie and her friends were on their way home and almost got into a car crash. There wasn't really that much action, just a bit of drama and conflicts between people, but otherwise it an ok book. If this book might interest you, then other books by Linda Newbery are "Lucy and the Green Man," "Sisterland," "Set in Stone," and "The Shell House." If you would like to purchase this book, a hardcover copy from Barnes and Noble costs $17.09. Linda Newbery also writes children books and fiction books.
