Grover and his father adjust to life after the death of Grover's mother. Grover lives in a small Southern town and part of the delight of reading this book is the depiction of the slightly-right-of-normal characters who inhabit the town including Grover himself and his friends. It is the feeling of complete truth about every experience Grover faces that I enjoyed most about this story.
Grover is on the list for the 1001 Children's Books You Must Read.
Grover's mother is very sick, but no one will tell him the truth about her. He realizes she is dying though, and is not surprised when she commits suicide rather than let herself become a total invalid. His real problem is coping with his father's reaction. Grover is able to cope quite well because he talks to several sympathetic and intelligent adults and friends.
Could be controversial because of the suicide. Not a really terrific book about death, but fairly adequate.