What do You think about The Center Of Everything (2004)?
Everyone is saying this has the distinct voice of To Kill a Mockingbird and it really is very similar. The story is not really like Mockingbird but the narrative perspective is told in the same way by Evelyn Bucknow. The book covers eight years of Evelyn's adolescence--from 10 years onto her graduation from high school. Her mother is constantly trying to make ends meet financially, and she loves Evelyn deeply. There is a great schism in the family because Tina, Evelyn's mother, had her out of wedlock. Tina's parents are extreme fundamentalists that will not let her forget her past. When Tina becomes pregnant again with a married man's baby, the problems start all over again, and Evelyn's grandmother, Eileen, is the only family that will talk to them.Evelyn's brother, Samuel, is born prematurely and it is soon obvious that he is mentally handicapped. Tina's role in the book changes to constant caretaker of Samuel, and Evelyn moves into her teenage years nearly alone. Her grandmother begins taking her to church, and Evelyn finds some answers there... yet she struggles with questions when one of her favorite teachers in school, Ms. Jenkins, becomes the target of a smear campaign by the fundamentalists for teaching evolution to the children. Evelyn's struggle to decide whether to side with her grandmother and the "nice people at the church" or her teacher shows exactly how Evelyn is certainly in the center of everything.The Center of Everything brings together many situations that Evelyn must confront--and she is a strong girl who has a very wise voice for someone so young.
—Lauren
I was told to read this by a BFF and she was so right! You will love this coming-of-age book told through the eyes of Evelyn, growing up in smalltown Kansas with her single Mom, Tina. Evelyn is bright, real, and the way she interacts with the variety of people who touch her life make this novel one you will have a hard time putting down. I love how interested she is in school- the way she describes her classes, teachers, and the learning material was a refresher course for me. I relearned and remembered so much subject matter because of the fascination Evelyn has with the world around her. She is a girl who will not fall into the trappings of being poor, the temptation and ease to skip school, teen pregnancy, etc.....I found myself cheering for this girl, even when she makes some not-so-smart decisions. But she learns from them.I also loved the writing of Laura Moriarty; for example, "...the ball of muscle in his arm sliding down like the bulge of a mouse inside a boa constrictor." If this is not a thoughtful, creative, vivid, descriptive sentence I will eat my very large sunhat.This was the first book I have read by Laura Moriarty and it will not be the last.
—Jennifer
Have you ever read a book wherein words simply cannot suffice to describe your thoughts and feelings? This is one of those books.It is incredible, absorbing, emotionally ladened, spot on with perception, strong in character development, terrifically written, endearing, warm, sad, yet joyous and, at times, humorous.This is the debut of Laura Moriarty and I'll be sure to read her next books.Ten year old Evelyn Bucknow lives smack dab in the center of the United States in Kerrville, Kansas. Analogous to a tornado destructively spinning n the heartland of the Midwest, as she tells her story, immediately the reader is sucked into her tumultuous life.As events beyond her control seem to rapidly spin, kicking up unwanted debris and tragically whizzing on by, while at times smacking her face down in the ground, Evelyn's clear perception of her life is so wonderfully told that I wanted to read the book from cover - cover in one sitting.Packed with many themes, the author poignantly tells the story of a young girl wise beyond her age, forced to live with a mother whose selfish and unintelligent decisions spill into the lives of others, causing Evelyn to be the adult and parent.As Evelyn grows, she has clothes and shoes that don't fit and a mother who doesn't notice or care. Living in low income housing, Evelyn is consistently bullied by those richer than she. With little support, this feisty, spunky girl learns who to trust and how to fend for herself.When her mother's relationship with a married man results in a child who is challenged; when her mother's stubbornness results in the inability to hold a job, when the only person Evelyn trusts is stolen away by another friend, Evelyn finds inner strength and fortitude to push forward.Intelligent and bright, Evelyn has keen observations and insights about people, about life, about right wing religion that judges instead of helps and about what society can do to those whom them deem less fortunate.I loved this book! Highly recommended.
—Linda Lipko
