Bass, Elizabeth. Wherever Grace Is Needed. Kensington. Jun. 2011. c.352p. ISBN 9780758235121. pap. $15. F
Grace Oliver is a product of a broken home, but she never quit loving the father and half brothers she left years ago when her mother took her to Oregon. Grace’s boyfriend has just moved in, and her music store needs attention, but when her father, Lou, breaks his leg, she returns to Austin, TX, to care for him. There, problems pile up. Lou is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, and two of the West kids next door, whose mother and sister died in an accident the previous year, depend on Lou’s house as a refuge. Jordan, the oldest, blames herself for the tragedy, while Jordan’s father uses Grace as a sounding board. Grace may have been the odd one out in both of her families, but she’s finally found a place where she’s needed.
VERDICT Bass (Miss You Most of All) introduces wonderful needy characters who discover their untapped strength. The teens and their relationships are particularly well developed. Kristin Hannah fans and readers attracted to Lisa Genova’s novels about Alzheimer’s and other brain disorders (Still Alice; Left Neglected) will appreciate this novel. Definitely buy for readers who demand character growth and relationships in their fiction.—Lesa Holstine, Glendale P.L., AZ
Copyright 2011. Library Journals, LLC. Reprinted with permission.
FTC Full Disclosure - My copy was supplied by Library Journal in order to review the book
