Shadowed Summer
Shadowed Summer
Saundra Mitchell
Best friends Iris and Collette find themselves in an awkward summer, where Collette has gone boy crazy, but Iris is not yet ready to give up their childhood games. Because they are best friends, Collette continues to humor Iris and play at summoning ghosts and casting spells, as long as there isn't anyone else around. Neither is prepared when one of their games yields a real ghost. Elijah is an agitated and frustrated soul, who whispers in Iris's ear the friendly taunt "where y'at, Iris?" Soon the girls are scouring the records and the memories of the town, trying to find out what happened to this cute guy...a contemporary of their parents who disappeared years before.
A delicious mix of hot and humid Louisiana small town atmosphere and a chilly haunting. Shadowed Summer captures perfectly the last moments of childhood when teens begin to question the world around them, and just how much the adults in their lives have been telling them. Also well done is the portrayal of first flirtations, emphasizing the awkward friendships, ill timed kisses, and figuring out where true loyalties lay. Highly recommend for 8th grade and up.
Nominated for the 2010 Best Young Adult Edgar Award.