The Lump in the Middle

A summer in a Cape Cod cottage should be a dream vacation, but for 13-year-old Kelsey, it is a time of trouble. The failure of a Cincinnati company has thrown her father out of work and forced them to sell their home. The loss of everything familiar places an understandable strain on everyone, and the close quarters of Aunt Syl's loaned cottage magnify normal family difficulties. Kelsey, a middle child, feels unappreciated; her older sister seems perfect, and her younger sister is cute and impossible. Kelsey's father has become remote, and her mother always blames her when things go wrong. Adler accurately captures the problems of the middle child, just as she portrayed those of the youngest in Get Lost, Little Brother (Clarion, 1983). Readers will enjoy the beach scenes and a light love interest, but also they may see their own complaints examined from several constructive viewpoints. Kelsey learns that all families have a degree of friction and that by modifying some of her own behavior, she can make her family and herself happier. Cindy Darling Codell