Imagine Flor's surprise when Sylvie announces that she is leaving Moonpenny and moving to the mainland in order to live with her aunt and her uncle and attend private school. It seems that Sylvie's big brother's mess ups have made her parents want a better situation for her.
One day, Flor goes off on her bicycle to hang out in the old quarry after her parents have a fight. She runs into a girl she doesn't know! It's a girl with hiking boots wearing an oversized sweatshirt. She says her dad is a geologist, and that they are on Moonpenny Island because of all of the fossils. The girls strike up an awkward friendship and not unlike Flor and Sylvie, Flor and new girl Jasper need each other.
What follows is a poignant story of friendship, family and change. Springstubb is at her very best as she coaxes the characters along in their journeys and sets the stage for the story to unfold. This is the summer that everything is changing for Flor and her family. It's that eye opening summer...the one where a certain degree of innocence is lost and truths are revealed. The juxtaposition of the three families gives readers much to think about.
This is a book that will stay with readers.
