Close Enough to Touch

Matt has to deal with the death of his girlfriend, Dory, her funeral and the weeks that follow. There is certainly stuff here for many teenagers to read and work through; it's not maudlin and, in the early stages, it's quite powerfully real, particularly the funeral and the family gathering which follows. I also liked some of the touches about the way Dory's friends dealt with her death and Matt; the monologues in Matt's head as he jogs or tries to drink himself into some way of dealing with the death and the strongly individual Margaret and what she offers Matt by way of advice and a new relationship. The phrasing of the information on the back cover is interesting. It refers to Margaret telling Matt in 'no uncertain language what to do with her mount' but, be assured, this is a book that you can safely include in book boxes and as an individual reader for this age group.