Overview
'Gently, deliberately paced. Luna's first-person tale provides a fresh look at mental disabilities and the additional burden of negative attitudes. . . A quiet coming-of-age tale with heart . . .' - Kirkus'Delivers a positive message about standing up for those who cannot advocate for themselves.' - Booklist What does it mean to lay down your life?
Luna has learned a lot in her thirteen years---how to skin a rabbit, how to gut a fish, where to pick the perfect wildflowers---but it's not enough. When her best friend, Mason, dies, Luna leaves her large family and moves in with Mason's mentally disabled mother, Ruby Day. Caring for her takes a bit more leaning and a lot more patience, but eventually they come to a backwards parenting relationship, working out the glitches and growing closer day by day, as they help one another grieve for Mason. Until the arrival of a conniving aunt who wants Ruby locked away in a mental institution. How can a thirteen-year-old girl stand up to Ruby Day's aunt? What would Mason want her to do? And why is saying good-bye so difficult?
Editorials
Booklist Review
This is a tender book with a strong heroine, and it delivers a positive message about standing up for those who cannot advocate for themselves.' - Kara Dean, Booklist Review -- Booklist ReviewPublishers Weekly
Magnin (Bright's Pond series) writes her first book for younger readers with this middle-grade story of 13-year-old Luna, whose best friend Mason dies in a car accident. Luna decides to move in with Mason's mother, Ruby Day, who is mentally disabled, to lend a hand and to honor her friend. The plot thickens when Ruby Day's Aunt Sapphire shows up in a chauffeured limousine wearing a boa made of two dead foxes. Sapphire wants something, and it can't be good. Magnin's strengths are well displayed in this coming-of-age tale: her dialogue crackles, her wit relieves (Luna is affectionately called "Luna Fish" from a mishap with a tuna fish sandwich), and her sense of family dynamics that includes the usual verbal sparring among children is lively. Luna's parents seem a bit too Hallmark Channel good to be true, but that won't bother everyone. There's no supernatural world or dystopia here—just smalltown life, death, and growing up. Ages 8–12. (Sept.)Children's Literature -
Luna, at thirteen, has suffered the tragic loss of her best friend. Now she insists that she be allowed to be one of the pallbearers. To quote her father in 1958, "Girls can't be pallbearers." When asked to do the eulogy, she tries to write it, but finally resorts to expressing how much Mason did for her. After the service Luna realizes that Mason's mother is incapable of living alone. Quite a responsibility for a young girl to take on, but she knows Mason would approve. Luna leaves a clean, supportive home with brothers and sisters and parents who obviously love each other to move to a filthy house and take over the laundry and try to keep Ruby Day from hurting herself. Life goes on without incident until Ruby Day's aunt comes to place her in the appropriate place for the feeble-minded(mentally disabled). Luna and her family are the only ones who recognize what a great person Ruby Day is in spite of her handicap. Quite an intelligent philosopher, "Being kind can make a mean person shine." Reviewer: JoAn Watson MartinVOYA -
It is 1958 and thirteen-year-old Luna is heartbroken when her best friend, Mason, is killed in an accident. On the day of his funeral, she realizes that his mentally disabled mother, Ruby Day, will need help taking care of herself—and that she should take up the task. Luna asks her parents if she can live with Ruby Day in her house just down the street. They consent, but the situation becomes complicated when Ruby Day's wealthy aunt demands that Ruby Day move back to Philadelphia with her. Luna, her family, and her friends are convinced that the aunt will return Ruby Day to a mental institution, so they band together to keep Ruby Day in their town, in her home. Luna's voice is strong and pulls the reader into this quiet, historical tale of family and friendships. With little back story, Magnin shows the strength of Luna's love for her deceased best friend and her unwavering care for Ruby Day. Luna's parents are strong forces in her life with opinions about her choices, but they unconditionally love and support her. Luna respects them right back—even if she does not always agree with them. While this book is published by a Christian publisher, the religious aspects are not preachy or forced; attending church and believing in God are organic to the characters. Carrying Mason will appeal to reluctant readers and teens who enjoy relatable, historical fiction. Reviewer: Deena LipomiKirkus Reviews
Initially, all 13-year-old Luna asks is that she be allowed to be a pall bearer for her best friend, Mason.
But it quickly becomes clear that more will be needed if she is to truly serve her friend's memory. Mason's mother, Ruby Day, is variously called "feebleminded" and a "retard," harsh words for a woman who was able to successfully raise her son and who works every day bagging groceries.Unfortunately, Ruby Day isn't quite able to manage her own home, so Luna moves in with her to provide both companionship and a little supervision. Then a villainous woman, Aunt Sapphire, shows up in her chauffeur-driven limousine with plans to take Ruby back to the Mason Home for the Feebleminded, a place she doesn't want to go. Luna is just one girl trying to fight for rights that Ruby doesn't seem to have—unless she can get the townspeople to rally behind their cause. Gently, deliberately paced, Luna's first-person tale provides a fresh look at mental disabilities and the additional burden of negative attitudes. While Ruby's disability is apparent, this effort also celebrates her capabilities. Although the primary focus is Luna, her quirky father, supportive mother and boy-crazy older sister are also sufficiently developed to provide additional depth.
A quiet coming-of-age tale with heart offers a fresh look at mentally disabled adults. (Fiction. 10-15)