The Forgotten Memories of Vera Glass

Gr 8 Up–Fifteen-year-old Vera Glass, a white Canadian and devout Christian, feels an emptiness that she can’t put her finger on. Everyone in Vera’s world has a small aptitude, or ability, and she wonders if someone’s aptitude could somehow be the cause. When she discovers her friends are feeling the same inexplicable emptiness, she embarks on a journey to figure out why. Through the author’s use of dramatic irony, readers quickly discover that Vera and her friends are forgetting the existence of multiple people, as if they were erased from the world. Readers will likely guess the culprit long before Vera makes any progress in her investigation, but the details of how and why are cleverly unfolded. Vera’s religious beliefs are a little overt, but altogether not too preachy. The full cast of characters offers a little more diversity, with some of Vera’s friends being Black, and her best friend the counterpoint of being atheist. Vera’s adept handling of tricky situations will also give teens a clear picture of how having open conversations with friends and parents can solve many problems.