A Room on Lorelei Street

Gr 9 Up—Zoe appears to be a worry-free teenager, balancing school, a part-time waitress job, and tennis. But she can't remember the last time she didn't worry, and desperately wants to know "how to make the remembering stop." Was her daddy really drunk enough to accidentally drown in the bathtub? How many countless nights were spent at a friend's house because Mama and Daddy forgot to pick her up? Did Mama remember to go to work, pay the utilities, get dressed? Now, at 17, Zoe is tired of being forgotten and invisible. Consequently, when her English teacher fails to pronounce her name correctly, the teen explodes and must undergo weekly counseling sessions. However, it is not the counseling that provides the solace and sanity Zoe craves, but a room she rents on Lorelei Street from elderly and whimsical Opal. Making ends meet threatens to crumble Zoe's resolution to herself to rise above and live a "normal" life. But her greatest foe is her manipulative, guilt-stabbing grandmother who "spits words like well-armed bullets." Mary E. Pearson's touching coming-of-age novel (Holt, 2005) tackles the invisible web of emotional and verbal abuse inflicted upon children and the yoke of adult responsibilities they often carry. Zoe is resilient, resourceful, and absolutely charming, in spite of her prolific use of four-letter words. Narrator Natalie Ross is remarkable in her ability to voice Zoe's bitter adult sarcasm in one breath and her child-like bewilderment in the next. She is equally proficient as lyrical Opal, smoke-etched Mama, and grandma. A must-buy.—Cheryl Preisendorfer, Twinsburg City Schools, OH