Kelly and Me

Leah Orton #1

by Carol Lynch Williams

Eleven-year-old Leah has a summer of outrageous adventures in her small Florida community, shared with her free-thinking grandfather and her younger sister Kelly, until an unexpected loss changes their lives

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Carol Lynch Williams is the author of more than 30 books for middle grade and young adult readers. Her novels include The Chosen One, Never that Far, Messenger and Never Said. Her most recent book is the novelization of the movie Once I Was a Beehive. Carol has an MFA from Vermont College in Writing for Children and Young Adults and teaches creative writing at BYU. She runs Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers, a week-long writing conference for the not-faint-of-heart writer (www.wifyr.com). As well she is a mentor for those who want to write for kids and teens. Her best creative effort, however, are her five daughters.

Reviews

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet story about two sisters spending the summer together and getting into trouble with their young-at-heart grandpa. All of the characters are believeable and likeable. But running under the surface of all this are some very real and very painful emotions, which Williams captures so well with a mix of truth and subtlety. For me, that's the one word that best describes this book: subtle. It made me cry, but it never hit me over the head with melodrama or unearned sentiment. I also really loved that the girls are such characters (not in the book sense, but in the sense that they pee in the road in the middle of the night under a full moon and go skinny-dipping, drive cars illegally).

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

My first Carol Lynch Williams novel, and my favorite. Williams takes on difficult life situations and makes them palatable for the preteen in a way that doesn't pander. It's a balance of taste and dysfunction that you don't often get in novels like these.

I only wish that more time had been spent in developing Leah's character after the tragedy hits. It seems so quickly handled that there is little done about it. It seems to me that this is really where the novel begins. Still, the delightful adventures of the two girls are worth reading.

[Kami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carol Lynch Williams always manages to bring out very real and heart felt emotions in her books. This one was very beautiful and humorous. I loved the relationship and closeness of the two sisters, and I really enjoyed all their summer fun/trouble. I thought Papa was a great character, and he added some really dynamics into the story. This is great read with a really good life lesson in it.

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for young teens. Funny and poignant, it's a fast read with lots of insight into the human spirit, specifically its capacity to live and love in the good times and in the bad.