Thursday, April 9, 2009

Review - Five Minutes More by Darlene Ryan

[Rating: 5.0]
Five Minutes More
Darlene Ryan
Paperback: 212 pgs.
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers, April 2009

5minmore

There's nowhere to look and not see coffins. ...like some kind of death department store. (p. 2)

D'Arcy and her mom are making the funeral arrangements for her dad. His car was found in the river and D'Arcy cant help wondering if it was an accident or he did it on purpose. If he committed suicide, the big question for D'Arcy is why?

"I just wanted you to know that if you have any troubling thoughts, if you need to talk to someone, I'm here." (p. 79)

As she looks for answers, D'Arcy meets Seth. He accepts her and doesn't ask questions she can't answer. Meanwhile she's growing farther and farther away from her friend Marissa, her boyfriend Brendan, and her mom. She just wants to forget the past and move on. She thinks Seth offers her that choice. But Seth has his own problems and he's looking for an escape...

"Do you know where Seth is today?" The smile disappears and his eyes shift away from me for a second. (p. 136)

Throughout the book, D'Arcy finds out a lot about herself. She has a hard time coping with who she is and what she learns about her family. D'Arcy goes on a downward spiral with no end in sight.

When my dad was here...it was never this dark and cold and empty. (p. 179)

With the exception of the spelling of D'Arcy's name, I really enjoyed this book. Orca publishes books for reluctant readers and I read this with them in mind. Claire, D'Arcy's step-sister is stereotypical - bitter about the new family and and new sister who stole her dad away. D'Arcy's mom is conveniently unaware of what's happening because she is tied up in her own grief. Marissa, D'Arcy's friend, tries to force her to confide what's happening but never goes to anyone to get help when D'Arcy refuses. Even with all of that, I think the book is great. I was blindsided by Seth's decisions and really wanted to know how the book would end. I will book-talk this one because I know some students who will love it.

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