House, Silas. Eli the Good. Somerville: Candlewick Press, 2009. 295 pages. (General Fiction)In the summer of 1976, Eli Book was 10 years old. He lived with his beautiful mother, his war-traumatized father, his rebellious older sister, and his trees. With his best friend Edie right next door, this was going to be a great summer. The first sign was his beloved Aunt Nell coming to stay with them for the summer. A former war protester, she and his father, a Vietnam veteran, often had clashing beliefs. Day after hot day passed, and Eli fell into a happy routine of swimming, reading, sitting with trees, dancing with his mother, and listening to records. Though the summer seemed perfect, it was gilded. Eli’s beloved aunt was fighting something that could take her down once and for all, his father was fighting the after affects of the Vietnam War, his mother and his sister were constantly bickering, and his best friend was having family problems. As the summer rolled along, Eli discovered how magical is to be a child, and the complications of growing up.
What a thought provoking book! I really loved this story because it grabbed a hold of me and pulled me into this small town. It seemed very realistic because, although many things were going on, it didn’t have one big adventure. It had many important, but little things going on, and sometimes, life just went on as normal. It seems like it didn’t really have a normal story plot with the rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution, and if I was asked what the climax was in this story I wouldn’t know what to say. The plot seemed more like how life would really be in a summer in a small town. All of the aspects of the book came together to make me wonder if this was based on a true story, that’s how real it seemed. I think this book would be a great one to read in class because it talks about many important issues and about growing up. I loved this book and I would give it a 5+ star rating!
Reviewed By: DancingPeguin96
