All the Pretty Things

Gr 9 Up–Fabuland amusement park is under new management, and it promises to be an unforgettable summer for everyone, starting with the ragtag Fabuland crew, including Ivy Cork, daughter of the owner. After park employee Ethan is discovered dead just outside the park and Ivy’s best friend Morgan is found unwell at the top of the Ferris wheel in the middle of the night, Ivy wonders, what more does she not understand about the park staff? Why was Ethan, who had Down syndrome, alone that night when his mother had given him strict directions not to be, and how did he die? Why was Morgan up in the Ferris wheel at night, and why won’t she talk to Ivy? Why are Ethan’s cousins and fellow employees not answering questions? Why does Jason, Ivy’s brother, refuse to come home? Why did Ivy’s dad fire someone publicly without letting them speak? Though teens may be frustrated at first to read another story of a teenage girl picking up the slack from a hapless father, this book quickly becomes more than that, taking turns right up to the end.