Minus Me

Gr 6 Up—When riding the tram one winter night, young Norwegian teen Linda feels a pain around her heart and can't breathe, just as she sees a mysterious boy leaning against a lamp post. Later, when she is competing at a diving meet, she sees the same boy and when she makes a spectacular dive, her heart stops. She is revived, but the doctors tell her that her only hope is a heart transplant, and that she can never do anything stressful or physically demanding. Her parents are understandably protective, and Linda chafes against all the restrictions. She decides to compile a bucket list of everything she would like to do in her life, such as having a first kiss, going to parties, traveling without her parents, and climbing into Trondheim Cathedral, but when she attempts to complete items on the list, things don't always turn out the way she expects. And the mysterious boy, whose name is Zak, keeps turning up and making her question her choices. Who is Zak, and why does he know so much about her? The prose in this Norwegian import occasionally seems a bit stilted. However, the story is moving, and Linda is a realistic 13-year-old, complete with flaws. Her reaction to her diagnosis is believable: She is angry about her illness and often cruel to her family and friends, though she is remorseful afterward.