Review: Three and a Half Stars!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 22, 2011
This is a really well done novelette describing life through an angry fourteen-year-old's eyes.  I enjoyed it immensely, especially the superb imagery and description Kadish provides in regards to fly-fishing.  I never was much of a fisher, but I enjoyed it as a little girl.  The thrill of catching a fish still weighs heavy in my mind, and through Kadish's prose I was easily able to envision Amanda as she trekked along the river, dredging up my memories of carefree summers and the palpable heat.  Although I've never been in Amanda's shoes, I believe Kadish does a superb job capturing her thoughts, feelings, and overall struggle as she attempts to cope with her mother's betrayal and her grandmother's sickness.  I enjoyed the story, though some of the incidents do seem far-fetched, and while there is some discussion of religion, it is not an overbearing topic within the novel, but rather a touch upon the philosophical side of humanity.  Three and a half stars.