New Guinea Moon

Gr 7–10—During the Christmas holidays of 1974, Julie's mother ships her off to New Guinea to stay with the father she barely remembers in a place she knows nothing about. The island is on the verge of independence from Australia, and Julie finds that she isn't the only one uncertain of what her place will be. The teen connects not only to her shy father and the expatriate community but also to the lush tropical country and its undefined future. This book is a welcome foray into the history of an area few American students will be familiar with, and Julie's uncertainty about romance, politics, politeness, and family is well portrayed and realistic. The use of the progressive present is an odd choice for a historical novel and is somewhat distracting in the prose. Although it is wonderful choice to depict the racial and political turmoil of independence, it seems like Constable tries to cram her own adult understanding of post-colonial and antiracist awakening into the experiences of a 16-year-old girl. The book makes a radical tonal and pacing shift about halfway through, but Julie's urgency to make things right at the climax is a vivid exploration of character.—L. Lee Butler, Hart Middle School, Washington, DC