The Mystery of Hollow Places
CCBC Review:
When Imogene’s famous mystery-writer dad disappears without warning, her stepmother, a therapist who knows her husband’s fragile mental health history, wants to make the search public rather than relying only on police. But Imogene talks her out of it, secretly convinced that her dad has gone to search for her long-absent mother, whom Imogene knows little about. With the help of her best friend, and the friend’s college-age older brother on whom Imogene has a crush, Imogene applies everything she’s learned reading her dad’s books to find her mom, because in doing so she believes she’ll find her dad. A novel that works as genre fiction is also a coming-of-age story in which Imogene’s search leads to the agonizing, honest truth that the people we love are imperfect, sometimes even fragile. Hints of romance fizzle realistically while so much else blossoms, from Imogene’s relationship with her stepmother to her understanding of frailty and forgiveness and the expansive nature of family. Mixed-race Imogene is part Chinese American. ©2016 Cooperative Children's Book Center
CCBC Age Recommendation: Age 13 and older
Age Range:
Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13)
Grades 9-12 (Age 14 and older)
Format:
Novel
Subjects:
Asian Americans
Chinese and Chinese Americans
Fathers
Friendship
Mental Health and Illness
Mothers
Multiracial Characters/Families
Mysteries
Stepmothers
Diversity subject:
Asian
Physical Disability/Condition
Publishers:
Balzer + Bray, HarperCollins
Publish Year: 2016
Pages: 291
ISBN: 9780062373342
CCBC Location: Fiction, Podos