Say Goodnight, Gracie

It's loss which is addressed here: Morgan's closest, lifelong friend, Jimmy, is killed by a drunk driver. The book traces Morgan's agonising attempts to accept her loss, let Jimmy go and move on. She's helped by the eventual knowledge that he'll always be a part of her life and that thoughts of him can enrich as well as sadden. The blurb describes the book as 'powerful and memorable' and it is - because it strenuously avoids any hint of sentimentality. It concentrates on the strong friendship between Morgan and Jimmy and the strength which she gains from that for the future. The relationship was ripe for development into love and it is the warm pain of unfulfilled promise which the reader feels most of all.