Christmas in July

by Alan Michael Parker | Literature & Fiction |
ISBN: 9781945814464 Global Overview for this book
Registered by wingGoryDetailswing of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 6/20/2020
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1 journaler for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by wingGoryDetailswing from Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Saturday, June 20, 2020
I got this softcover from an online seller. [I'm using one of the new scannable QR-code labels; will see if it encourages more journal entries.]

I'll admit I chose this one based on its title, during a search for inexpensive books about Christmas in July for the July release challenge of that name. This one turned out to be quite intriguing, and much different than I'd expected: it's a novel about a troubled teenaged girl who's got terminal cancer, and is trying to cope with that - in part by reinventing herself, such that she's opted to go by the name "Christmas". The tale unfolds from the viewpoints of many people, all residents of the small town where Christmas has gone to stay with her Aunt Nikki (who has issues of her own). These different snippets provide a scattered view of who Christmas is and what she's going through, depending on the situations of the various narrators and their own problems. Some bits are relatively light-hearted - I especially enjoyed the segments "Dear Dorothy" (narrated by a young Korean-American woman who's been running a "Wizard of Oz"-themed blog with an advice column in which she poses as Dorothy Gale, a column to which Christmas submits a letter) and "Blue the Dog" (narrated by Snow Joe, a fellow who lives in the woods with Blue the Dog, does lots of meditation and yoga, and is happy to help the lost-and-ill Christmas). Both of those felt more human to me than some of the others, and while the interactions with Christmas were very different, their interest in her seemed kindlier.

This is... not an upbeat book, though; I won't say much about Christmas' ultimate fate, and it isn't clear whether staying with Nikki was the best option for her under trying circumstances, but it's quite different from the usual ill-teen story, and I'd give it points for that alone. Am tempted to recommend it to my book group just to see what kind of discussion we get - assuming it's possible to have in-person groups again someday!

Released 3 yrs ago (7/7/2020 UTC) at Little Free Library, Sequoia Dr in Tyngsboro, Massachusetts USA

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Guidelines for safely visiting and stocking Little Free Libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic, from the LFL site here.

I left this book in this newly-listed Little Free Library in Tyngsboro MA; hope someone enjoys it!

[See other recent releases in MA here.]

*** Released for the 2020 Christmas in July challenge. ***

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