Bibliography: Albert, Lisa; Mercy Lily;
Flux; Woodbury, MN; 2011; 232 pages; ISBN 978-0-7387-2699-1.
Plot: Sixteen year old,
Lily has been taking care of her mother for the last four years. Her father passed away when she was 12 and
Lily, has been helping her mother deal with multiple sclerosis ever since. Lily’s mother was not responsive to normal MS
treatment, so Lily has been giving her bee venom therapy. Her mother is currently up to twelve stings
and it seems to not be helping at all. On
a beautiful spring morning, Lily’s mother asks her to sting her sixteen times
and if she has a reaction to not resuscitate her. Lily is scared, but knows that her mother is
suffering. Mercy Lily is the story of Lily’s quest to help her mother get
through the horrible disease of multiple sclerosis.
Review: I picked up this book
to focus on older readers and readers that like to read about issues that could
happen in their own life. I was floored
by the story line. Lily is only sixteen
and she is giving her mother bee sting therapy!
Then to make matters worse, her mother is giving up on life and asks
Lily to help her! This book handles a
very heavy topic and should be read by older readers.
When the story opens, the reader learns of Lily’s mothers request to end
her life. Immediately, Albert takes the
reader deep into Lily’s world. We also
learn that Lily has no friends. Ever
since her father passed away, Lily has been the sole caregiver to her mother,
which has made it hard for Lily to connect with teens her own age. Lily is dealing with this huge request on her
own. Slowly, Lily starts to reconnect
with her past friends and develops great friendships in Trent and Shauna. Both of them are there for Lily and help her
with the pressure she is feeling taking care of her mother and their farm.
Even though I loved this book, I had an issue with the number of editing
errors in the book. At one point they
were so often that I found myself focusing on the errors rather than the
storyline. This book would benefit from
a good editor. Otherwise, teens will
fall in love with Lily and feel her pain as she goes through this difficult
time.
Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction; Coming of Age; Problem Novel
Interest Level: age 12 and up
Related Books: Bluefish by Pat
Schmatz; The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth.
Characters:
Lily – the protagonist, narrator
Sylvia – Lily’s mother
Jed – the bus driver and only adult that Lily trusts
Shauna – Lily’s old best friend that comes back around in the novel
Trent – Lily’s known him since they were 5 and he becomes a great support
for Lily
Author Information: http://www.lisaalbert.com/
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