Out of the Box

Mulder, M. (2011). Out of the Box. Victoria, BC: Orca Book Publishers.

"I wonder why some people can have terrible lives and still find things to be happy about, and other people can have everything and still be miserable."

This is the question Ellie asks herself when a summer with her fun-loving Aunt Jeanette takes her out of the round of tears, arguments and accusations that haunts her home life and offers her a different view of the world.  Jeanette lost her partner, Alison, to leukemia.  Ellie goes to Victoria to stay with Jeanette for the whole summer and help clean out the basement (a project long planned with Alison).  They find an old bandoneon (an Argentinian instrument like an accordion) in the basement and Ellie falls in love.  During her stay Ellie helps her aunt at the soup kitchen, makes a new friend, searches for the original owner of the bandoneon and realizes that life can be different. With her aunt's help, Ellie learns that it is not her job to solve all the problems for the adults in her life - it is all right to just be thirteen.  Far from trite, this novel's conclusion holds out hope while remaining realistic.  A gentle portrayal of mental illness and how it can affect others, this empowering novel reveals the joy and freedom available to those who have the courage to reach out to others.

This novel is included in the Canadian Children's Book Center's Best Books for Kids and Teens 2012.

Intermediate/Young Adult