Love and First Sight by Josh Sundquist

Love and First Sight by Josh Sundquist is a debut novel likely to appear on future award lists. It is a relatively quick read, but a thought provoking one which explores issues of reacting to a disability, parent-child relationships, and coming of age romance. The main character, Will Porter, is 16, blind, and moving to a new “mainstream” school. There, he gradually builds relationships, especially with Cecily who also seems not to fit in with “normal” expectations.  They support and accept each other, but tension increases when Will has a chance at an experimental operation.

Sundquist does an excellent job of raising questions about what it is like to be blind or have a friend who is visually impaired:

   - "Sighted people are always doing this. Imaging they are translating vision into words for me, but they are really just describing one image by comparing it to another image, neither of which I have a point of reference for."
   - "That’s sightist .... Assuming that blind people cannot have a full life because they don’t have eyesight. My sensory experience isn’t less than yours. It’s just different."
  - "Do people have a duty to disclose what they look like to their blind friends?"
  - "Eyesight is in the eyes. Vision is more. It is in the mind. The heart. The soul."

Those interested in learning more about the impacts of gaining sight should also read Robert Kurson’s non-fiction Crashing Through.

The emphasis on difficulties of “fitting in” reinforces the appeal of Love and First Sight to late middle school and early high school students and I concur with School Library Journal’s review: “A highly recommended and engaging story for most YA collections.” In addition, Sundquist has been on my to read list for a while and I will be turning to his earlier non-fiction works, Just Don’t Fall and We Should Hang Out Sometime.

The Heretic's Creed by Fiona Buckley and more mysteries

Looking for a new mystery to read? Coming in January is the 14^th book in the Ursula Blanchard Elizabethan Mysteries by Fiona Buckley. Titled The Heretic's Creed and set in 1577, this novel takes place primarily in a rural area to the North of England. Ursula Blanchard is a half-sister to Queen Elizabeth I and, as in earlier whodunits in the series, she is asked to undertake a mission for the Queen. This time, two men were sent separately to deliver a message and to retrieve an ancient book related to astronomy from Stonemoor House in rural Yorkshire. Neither completed the mission and Sir William Cecil suggests that Ursula and her companions may be more successful. Upon arrival on the moors, a snowstorm contributes the feeling of a locked room mystery, essentially trapping Ursula's party with the religious women who live at Stonemoor House. The Heretic's Creed received a starred review from Publishers Weekly and can be read as a stand-alone story or in sequence with others in this excellent historical mystery series.

Another winter mystery - although a bit lighter and certainly more modern is Iced Under by Barbara Ross. 

This book is number five in the Maine Clambake series, a collection of cozies with which I was not previously familiar, even though the first, Clammed Up, was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel. In this story, Julia Snowden of Busman’s Harbor, Maine, is on a seasonal hiatus from the family clambake business when she collects the mail and discovers an extremely valuable necklace has been sent to her mother. There is no return address, but her mother recognizes the family heirloom missing since the 1920s and an enclosed note includes directions to use the funds from the necklace to restore their family home. Julia sets out to uncover the sender and learns some family secrets, including a questionable death (of course!). Readers of this series are very positive and I found Iced Under to be a quick, enjoyable read so I will also be looking for more.

Yet another cozy mystery involving a “cold” case is Jenn McKinlay’s Better Late than Never, part of the Library Lovers mystery series which features head librarian Lindsey Norris and the staff of Briar Creek Public Library. The renewed investigation for a killer is suddenly prompted by a long overdue library book. This is so light and fluffy, you will likely finish it off in an afternoon. The romance gets old, but the characters and setting are fun.  Enjoy!