Hold Still by Nina LaCour

[bj neary]

Hold Still by Nina LaCour
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this first novel by Nina LaCour! Caitlin is devastated when her best friend Ingrid commits suicide. And Caitlin had no idea. She literally does nothing all summer, her funk is so huge. Ingrid had such a great personality, they were best friends, did everything together, yet Caitlin had no idea Ingrid was depressed! She finds her best friend's journal under her bed one night, when did Ingrid put it there? Did she want Caitlin to read it? As Caitlin reads the different entries--some are to Caitlin, some to Jayson (a boy she liked), hall monitors and rain clouds...Ingrid was a great artist and photographer who carried her camera everywhere and snapped pictures all the time. Ingrid begins to live and rejoice in life without Ingrid by reading Ingrid's journal, by loving a boy who provides sympathy, and friendship, making a new girl friend. It is her art teacher, Miss Delani, who tells Caitlin she is just as talented as Ingrid and helps renew Caitlin's purpose in life. LaCour was able to sustain the deep, aching sadness that paralyzes Caitlin throughout the first half of the novel and she does a superb job of slowly,reawakening her zest for life through her relationships with her friends and family. I really liked Caitlin's character (depressed, cranky, funny and anguished) but even more I liked so many of the supporting characters, gay Caitlin who knew who she was; Jayson and Taylor--nice boys, Miss Delani- who found it difficult to deal with Ingrid's death and seeing Caitlin everyday as a reminder of how she failed Ingrid, Caitlin's supportive mom and dad. This is a great honor choice for the Morris Debut Award, teens will love it!


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