Sarah likes art, but one day she just can't do it anymore. She can't draw the pear her teacher tells the class to draw. She can't draw her own hands for another assignment. She can no longer do any of her art projects. Sarah also decides she can't go to school anymore, so she stops going. Her parents (who have always supported her artistic talent) are not happy, but no matter what they do Sarah will not go.
What does Sarah do instead? She wanders around the city, follows a homeless artist and eventually runs into a younger version of herself. And then an older version of herself. The younger Sarah wants to talk about the family trip to Mexico and Sarah's brother who went away. But current Sarah doesn't want to talk about her brother and how he never calls. At home, it's like her brother doesn't exist.
Older Sarah tries to reassure current Sarah, but it's not the past or future that is the problem. Sarah doesn't want to deal with all the stuff in her life happening now. Over the course of this unconventional story, we learn the truth about her missing brother, her angry father and the reason she walked out of school.
The story is off beat enough that I had second thoughts for the first few chapters. It is odd even for A.S. King (whose books I generally love). But I am glad I continued because it is a remarkable story.
For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.
