But oddly enough, I didn’t feel anything at all. This is one of those books that should’ve reduced me to tears. But when he died in his sleep, Pearl’s sad life slowly unravels, exposing secrets that threatened everything she’d come to know, including her relationship with Henry.

Really, the only people in Bean’s life she could count on aside from Henry was Gus, her grandfather. Henry’s mother hasn’t left the house since his father disappeared and Pearl’s mom can only deal with her only if she’s had enough alcohol in her system. Regardless of what it was, theirs was a relationship on the brink of something more. And maybe their absent fathers was the shared ground that bonded them together, or maybe it was from having a couple of mothers who seem to be more involved in their own dramas rather than raising their kids. From not fitting in among kids of their own age, to not ever knowing their fathers, they’re kindred spirits who promised to never let the other grow old lonely. Pearl and Henry practically grew up together. This is one I’ll be thinking about for a long, long time – and a book that I think will be an amazing choice for teen book clubs and literature circles when it comes out this summer. It is a book that believes in love, too…even after years have passed. It’s a book about the cost of keeping secrets, trouble that turns beautiful, and painful truths that make room for love. It’s peopled with characters so rich, so beautifully imperfect, that it’s hard to believe they’re not real. PEARL is so many things… it’s part family drama, part romance, and part mystery. But when Gus dies, family secrets fly like milkweed fluff in the wind, and everything is different – Pearl’s relationship with her mother, her friendship with Henry, and her image of the grandfather she thought she knew. She hangs out with her best friend Henry and watches Days of Our Lives with his mom. Pearl Collatti has lived a pretty mundane life with her mom and grandfather, Gus. This book keeps its secrets close to its heart, so I’m going to tell you only what I can without giving them away. She’s one of the smartest, kindest people I’ve ever met, and I loved her first two books, so I wasn’t surprised when this one crept quietly up and swept me away, too. Its author, Jo Knowles, is someone I’m lucky enough to count as a friend. If she did, though, it would have been okay… I’d just have to tell her about PEARL. I finished reading an advance copy of this YA novel on an airplane heading home from IRA, quietly wiping tears from the corners of my eyes and hoping the lady next to me wouldn’t notice.

Pearl by Jo Knowles