In the reflective and worldly-wise middle-grade novel Ferris, Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo (The Tale of Despereaux) renders with melancholy gusto a child's mission to shine love into all her relationships.
Ten-year-old Emma Phineas Wilkey, nicknamed Ferris because of her fairground birth, is having an eventful summer. Ferris's younger sister, Pinky, fully commits to a life of crime; their beloved grandmother Charisse falls ill and befriends a ghost; and their home may harbor raccoons. Meanwhile, Ferris's best friend plays the same piano tune on repeat and Ferris acts as sacrificial intermediary between her untethered uncle and his "formidable" estranged wife. Stalwart Ferris is unnerved by the number of changes happening to her loved ones but, as her mother explains, it is all part of "learning to live in the world," with all its heartache, grief, and uncertainty.
"Every good story is a love story," Charisse tells Ferris, and every relationship Ferris works to maintain is a story of love. Acute observations and inimitable characterization--hallmarks of DiCamillo's craft--charm with their delicate revelations. Vocabulary pervades the story--"knowing the right word to use at the right time" grounds Ferris amid the chaos of her eccentric companions. The colorful, multigenerational characters surrounding Ferris provide amusing anecdotes that carry the story forward, and even moments of sadness offer thoughtful opportunities for readers to appreciate Ferris's capacity to care for her community. Under DiCamillo's deft and masterful touch the fragile nature of life is celebrated rather than mourned, and themes that might weigh heavily in other hands, particularly mortality, are rendered with gentleness and grace. --Kit Ballenger, youth librarian, Help Your Shelf