Laugh With the Moon

Sometimes I pick a book simply because the cover intrigues me. (I know that makes me terribly shallow--but admitting you have a problem is the first step...right?) I figure it's at least a good way to get out of my comfort zone and try something new. In this case, that book was Laugh With the Moon, by Shana Burg. 

Clare Silver knows only one thing--her life is ruined. Not in the typical 13-year-old angst way, though. Her mother is dead, and her father seems to not grieve for her at all. On top of that, he yanks Clare away from of everything and everyone she has ever known and loved, and transports her to the most primitive setting she could imagine--Milawi, Africa--for sixty-four days. Her father finds joy in the natives and doctors them selflessly, while Clare tries to simply survive from one day to the next. Just when she's starting to find her new self, she suffers another unexpected, heartbreaking loss. How can she possibly survive?

Shana Burg's real life experiences as a teacher in Africa gave her a unique perspective, and this tale shares that experience with the reader. She clearly demonstrates that survival doesn't necessarily mean stoicism, even when her new acquaintances seem to shrug off tragedy. I couldn't help but wonder what happened to the characters after the conclusion of the book--but isn't that what a good book does?

Burg, S. (2012). Laugh with the moon. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.