This book has a lot of serious themes. A family is recovering from the loss of their oldest son by getting a fresh start, moving from rural Vermont to inner city New York. It’s mostly at the impetus of the mother, who seems to be dealing with what happened by avoiding thinking about it- always on the go, super busy. The father, in contrast, retreats in his grief and sinks into depression, spending days shut up in his room. It doesn’t help that he had to leave behind his backyard garden. The main character, Rain, is bottling up a secret- she feels in part responsible for what happened the night her brother died, but can’t bear to tell anyone about it. She misses her best friend back in Vermont and feels very out of place at her new school. Most people in the new neighborhood speak Spanish and she can’t understand them. Her main solace is running- she joins the track team at school- and there’s another kid in her building who also likes to run, so they become friends (even though there is some bad feeling at first, because Rain’s family moved into the apartment the other girl’s best friend had moved away from). As Rain navigates the new school, she gets exposed to all kinds of things- writing poetry. Helping at a kitchen that feeds homeless people. Realizing how many people around her are less fortunate. She starts scheming, trying to find a way to lift her dad’s mood, to bring her parents closer together (they’re facing a breakup) and to help a woman who has created a safe space for kids in the neighborhood, keep her place open when she can’t pay the rent anymore. I liked the gardening metaphors throughout. I did think the reveal about what Rain had done the night her brother died, felt really dragged out- hinted at through the whole book but not openly discussed until the very end. The solution to helping her parents and the lady who was going to loose her space at the same time, was nicely done but also felt a bit too pat. Oh, and there’s a track meet as a big part of the story, too. With Rain feeling a lot of pressure to do well in the relay race. A lot going on! It could have been a bit simpler, but it also felt quite true to life, how complicated and mixed-up things are. Not everything turns out perfectly, but things do get better and it ends on a very positive note.
Borrowed from the public library. Completed on 7/29/24.