I recently finished reading the book Orphan Train: A Novel by Christina Baker Kline. It was so touching and magical and amazing. I first chose this book because I saw it on the shelf at Target! I had to wait to read it, as I had requested it at the library and there was quite a list of people waiting. Once I started reading it, I could not stop!
Orphan Train takes place near Bar Harbor, Maine, where I have visited several times due to my dad's family living near there. The main character is a teenage girl who is in foster care and finding her own way of "dealing" with the emotions that come along with that. This leads to her needing to do community service to right some wrongs. Her service comes in the form of assisting an elderly woman clean and organize her attic. While helping the woman sort through boxes, the two, so opposite at first glance (one young and poor, one old and rich), find out that their histories are more alike than different.
Things I loved about the book: its setting is a real location and is vividly detailed -- if you have not been to Bar Harbor, you will see it in your mind; its characters have real depth; there is a character near the end with my last name! That came as a shock as it is not a common last name!
