Loading Search

• Buy this Book
• Book Creators
• Related Blog Posts
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

Building upon her 1990 success, award-winning author Virginia Hamilton returns to the endearing main characters of Cousins. In the previous book, Cammy's first cousin Patricia Ann died in a drowning accident while trying to rescue their cousin Elodie. It is now a year later, and the two surviving cousins (Cammy and Elodie) are grappling with their own grief and guilt over the drowning. "For a long... More

Building upon her 1990 success, award-winning author Virginia Hamilton returns to the endearing main characters of Cousins. In the previous book, Cammy's first cousin Patricia Ann died in a drowning accident while trying to rescue their cousin Elodie. It is now a year later, and the two surviving cousins (Cammy and Elodie) are grappling with their own grief and guilt over the drowning. "For a long time after, all them had this awful kind of hurt look, like it was their fault," writes Hamilton in her confiding, down-home narrative. "They noticed it about each other. And all year it seemed they had to make their way through an aching dark to get to a peaceful day time. That's how Cammy saw it all. They had to go on with what they had to keep looking through." Both girls are distracted from their pain when a huge family reunion in Cammy's hometown unites the cousins with distant relatives, including the wisecracking computer-hound Fractal. Something about Fractal makes Cammy leery--and it's not just her overbearing cockiness. Eventually Fractal leads Cammy into the heart of a long-hidden family secret that threatens to shatter what little stability Cammy has built since her cousin's death. The emotional stakes run high in Second Cousins, but this is when Hamilton is at her best, deftly giving a believable voice to preteen pain and the overriding power of an extended family's love. (Ages 9 and older) --Gail Hudson

You must be a member of JacketFlap to add a video to this page. Please Log In or Register.