An Unexpected Gem: Edna In The Desert

Published Jan. 23, 2014 by The Book Landers

Rating:

5-STAR

Wow…this book was an unexpected gem 🙂 The story of Edna (main character) is probably something we can all somehow relate to, one way or another. Edna’s a rebellious young teen; she doesn’t act “rebellious” or “rude” on purpose…she just can’t seem to help wanting to up-one everyone she meets. And I must say, Maddy Lederman really nailed the voice of a somewhat arrogant (but doesn’t know she is) 13 year old–trust me, I speak from experience, as I know a person going through the “rebel teen” phase right now, lol.

Edna’s smart, and she knows it too. She’s also used to getting things her way–she knows how to manipulate people. But she’s pushed her luck too far–her parents are sick of her being disrespectful and decide sending her to live with her grandmother and grandfather for the summer might be the cure to this problem. Oh, and did I mention her grandparents live in the middle of no where, have no running water and refrigerator, never mind cell service and wifi?

Things start out badly for Edna the day she is abandoned. Her grandmother is never one for much words and her grandfather suffers from PTSD and spends the day sitting in a chair on the porch and staring off into the distance. However, things take an unexpected turn of event when Edna gets lost in the desert and meets Johnny.

I think the interactions between Edna and Johnny were very interesting. Edna completely falls heads over heels for Johnny, even though he is 17 years old. What’s even more interesting is that although Johnny likes Edna, he knows that it isn’t appropriate for them to date (no matter how Edna wants to.) I find Johnny to be a very good role model and influence on Edna as Edna strives to become a better person by hanging around Johnny. Also, I was impressed that Johnny nicely, but firmly told Edna that they could only be friends and no more.

Overtime, Edna learns more about her grandparents and how to quiet down her mind. This novel also really highlights how we can become so consumed with technology that we don’t even notice that we are speeding right through life without even stopping to admire the sunset. From sunup to sundown, it’s always go go go! Emails to reply, phone calls to make, status to update, tweets to tweet and texts to text…it seems like there is no time to reflect on ourselves anymore. At first Edna is somewhat terrified by the lack of “busyness” (for lack of better word), as this quote nicely describes:

“Doing nothing felt like falling–out of what and into what she didn’t know.”

But, as I mentioned before, the thing that clinched Edna in the Desert a 5 star review was Edna’s voice. It was totally believable–Maddy captured all the drama and thought processing of a young teen and packed it into Edna’s character. Bravo!

I highly recommend this book to readers in grade 6 and above (and if you know someone who’s going through the “Edna-before-the-desert” stage, perhaps suggest them reading this book–perhaps they will reflect upon their behavior).