Summer of the Gypsy Moths

Bestselling author of the Clementine chapter books, Sara Pennypacker has written a great new novel for kids (suggested for readers in grades 4-6).  This is the story of two adolescent girls who are thrown together on a temporary basis at a home on Cape Cod.  Stella loves living with her great-aunt Louise for the summer while her own mother tries to "find herself."  However, Louise has taken in a foster child, Angel, who's tough and prickly and the girls hardly speak to each other.  Angel has already been in six foster homes and is pretty angry and sarcastic.  On the inside Angel is a scared and lonely girl looking for family connections.  Stella is the one who always stays positive and admires Heloise for newspaper column of hints for good housekeeping and the fact that Heloise is always looking on the bright side no matter what life throws at you.  Well, tragedy strikes when Louise dies of a heart attack and the girls decide to run the Linger Longer Cottage Colony in her stead without telling anyone about the death.  The owner of the summer cottages is a wonderful man, George, who befriends the girls in many ways, but he does think something is fishy about Angel and Stella's behavior and the fact that Louise never seems to be at the house when he stops by.  How the girls handle the responsibility of being property managers during the high tourist season and trying to cover up the death of Stella's relative makes for interesting reading.  The best parts about Summer of the Gypsy Moths are the characterizations and a unique plot not commonly used in children's books.  Happy summer reading!