Saving Sailor

Renee Riva

A story set in 1968 about a quirky girl, a faithful dog, and one unforgettable summer...

  Set in a simpler time, Saving Sailor is a heartwarming tale of how hearts can change and relationships can be restored through love and forgiveness.

  After spending the first half of summer driving her Italian family crazy with her fake southern accent, A.J. finds a soul-mate on the other side of the island to divert her attention to. She is intrigued to learn that Danny shares her same love of star-gazing, and the bigger mysteries of life. Together they share an enchanting summer, along with A.J.'s faithful dog, Sailor. As A.J. and Danny endure family hardships together, they learn a lot about the price of betrayal. Set in a simpler time, Saving Sailor is a heartwarming tale of how hearts can change and relationships can be restored through love and forgiveness.

My Take:

This book was a sweet little coming of age story, following a young girl full of spirit and compassion as she  tries to navigate the waters of her crazy Italian family, boy crazed older sister, and scariest of all?  Her very own growing up and budding womanhood.  My favorite thing about this book were the characters, the main character, AJ, was such a good solid kid, the kind of kid you read about and hope your children can emulate.  Her family, aside from the humor you know is going to come out of a heavily Italian family, is totally hilarious.  You've got a mom that loves to pretend to be Raquel Welch, signing autographs and causing an uproar, a dad that isn't afraid to show off his bright pink boat, and a grandma with so many statues of Saints littering her floor, one might confuse her house for the White Witch's domain in The Chronicles of Narnia.  The book is set in the 60s, a more innocent time, narrated by an innocent girl.  Throughout the book, we see AJ transform from the naive little girl, to the maturing adolescent as she attempts to make sense of events going on around her.  The events range from serious in nature, such as trying to figure out why a man would "have a sleepover" with a woman other than his wife, why her sister would subject herself to heartache after heartache, and overcoming the sadness that accompanies death and loss.  Many of the events are humorous, being locked in a confessional (AJ's greatest fear), or accepting the fact that she is having her first crush.  All in all, I think this would be a really great book for any young girl to read, it will help her figure out who she is, and learn to accept and love herself.  I rate this book a 2, Borders with a Coupon.

 Do you agree with my review?  Do you think I'm totally off base?  Either way I'd love to hear from you, be sure to leave a comment and tell me how you feel!

If this book were a movie it would likely be rated PG.  While it has elements of death and infidelity, it is designed to teach girls of that age how to deal with such themes in an appropriate way.  There is nothing graphic, for example, as mentioned before, the infidelity is described as "having a sleepover"

If you are interested in purchasing Saving Sailor, please consider supporting The Book Buff by purchasing from the following Amazon link, thank you!

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