Lindsay Lackey

First sentence: The moon hovered above them, a silver-white orb in the black Colorado sky. Its light illuminated the treetops on the mountainside behind the house and washed the two boys' small faces in a pale glow.

Premise/plot: Houston Stewart loves, loves, loves, loves his brother, Robbie. The two dream of being astronauts. But as things are, Robbie is unlikely to get to see his dream come true. He has cerebral palsy is wheelchair bound and is nonverbal. Like it or not, there are limitations to what he can physically do. That doesn't stop the boys from dreaming and scheming together. The book follows Houston's adventures and misadventures at JARP, Junior Astronaut Recruitment Program, a camp. His brother, of course, always wanted to go too. But now they'll be separated for weeks--and it will be hard for both.

My thoughts: This is a coming-of-age novel that celebrates FAMILY and LIFE. It doesn't shy away from harder topics. But it isn't overly melodramatic. I enjoyed getting to know all the characters and spending time with them.… (mere)