Let's No One Get Hurt
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"Fifteen-year-old Pearl is squatting in an abandoned boathouse with her father, a disgraced college professor, and two other grown men, deep in the swamps of the American South. All four live on the fringe, scavenging what they can--catfish, lumber, scraps for their ailing dog. Despite the isolation, Pearl feels at home with her makeshift family: the three men care for Pearl and teach her what they know of the world ... While Pearl is out scavenging in the woods, she meets Main Boy, who eventually reveals that his father has purchased the property on which Pearl and the others are squatting"--Amazon.com.
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Besides the poetic language, which others have noted, there are several things I like about this novel. The details of life on the river are sharp–the fishing, the raft, the boat (and, yes, there's definitely a Huck Finn vibe there). The main character, Pearl, is fresh–she's in a predicament I don't see often and she responds with strength, although her vulnerability is at all times present. The narrative is primarily forward-looking–while there are some questions about what happened in the past and a few brief scenes reveal them, this is mostly a story that starts and keeps going without dwelling too long in flashback.
Is it a YA book? I didn't think so when I started it, but maybe it is. Certainly, I think teen readers would get a lot out of it.
