The Game of Life
Note: I received a temporary e-copy of this book from Random House Children's / Knopf Books for Young Readers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
In her beautiful middle grade debut, The Distance to Home, Jenn Bishop has created a story that is both heartbreaking and hopeful. With sensitive authenticity, the book explores a family's unexpected encounter with crippling grief and their steady journey towards forgiveness, acceptance, and healing. This tender and emotional story, together with its intriguing setting and incredibly likable characters, is one that will remain with readers long after the last page has been read.
For Quinnen and her family, the unthinkable has happened. And it has literally changed every aspect of their lives. Ever since a fatal accident claimed the life of Haley, Quinnen's older sister, nothing has been the same. Not even going to the ballpark to watch her beloved Bandits play, which has always been a source of joy and personal refuge for Quinnen, is immune from painful memories and the constant reminders that Haley is gone. The atmosphere of grief is felt throughout the story, made more poignant by the chapters alternating between telling the story of the present ("this summer") and the past ("last summer"). In the first narrative, we are acutely aware that something has happened but are given few details. This is made more significant with the foreboding sense from the other narrative that something unknown but tragic is going to happen. This technique creates a masterful build up of tension until the two separate dialogues finally merge, the reader finds out the whole story, and healing for a family and a town can begin at last.
What makes this story really special is a captivating cast of characters and an incredibly appealing setting. Even with the unique format of this book, loss and grief are well worn topics in the middle grade genre. That storyline, in and of itself, is not particularly unique. It's been done many times before in many different ways. However, Bishop has done a fantastic job in crafting characters and interactions that are compellingly real as well as relatable, and she has also created a wonderful setting in which to tell her story. Quinnen lives in a small town that hosts minor league baseball players as they wait for their careers to take off. This is such a unique aspect and was absolutely fascinating to learn about. It is these original details that breathe life into this story and convince the reader to become truly invested in what's happening.
As for the characters, I loved getting to know Quinnen. The entire story is told in her passionate and witty voice, with just the right amount of sarcasm thrown in for humor. She is very much an eleven-year-old girl with eleven-year-old concerns who happens to be thrown a curveball that no child should ever have to deal with. Her experience and descriptions are very believable, so that both boy and girl readers will root for her as she recovers on and off the baseball mound. I also loved getting to know Casey, Brandon, and Hector; each character was genuine and noticeably distinctive. Their interactions with each other were truly a pleasure to read. Of course, there is a lot in this book that is painful. In the wake of their terrible loss, Quinnen struggles to reconnect to her grieving parents and she also must reconcile past misunderstandings with a sister who is gone. These relationships lay the foundation for the entire book and although I felt that the ending may have been resolved just a little too neatly, I admire how Bishop wasn't afraid to explore difficult emotions between friends and families.
The title of this book is a touching and incredibly appropriate one. Baseball plays such a significant role in Quinnen's life, it is only natural that her journey to healing would be thought of in terms of her beloved sport. It's through this game, after all, and the people that she encounters because of it that Quinnen eventually finds redemption for herself and acceptance for all that's to come. While painful at parts, Jenn Bishop's remarkable debut is ultimately a story of hope and forgiveness, courage and compassion. With a team of wonderful characters and a fascinating scenery, this book is truly a home run.
Release Date: June 28, 2016