Catch the Light

Gr 8 Up–Marigold is lost. After her father dies of cancer, her older sister leaves for college, and her mom moves her and her younger sister across the country to start fresh—everything Marigold once knew to be true is now out of focus. A photographer at heart, Marigold lives her life through photographs, and her memories of her old life seem to be slipping away quicker than she can catch them. She knows what she should be doing, but she can’t make herself do any of the things she once thought would be her life’s path. The boy she loved feels distant, she can’t talk to her best friend anymore—it’s easier to just lie than to come clean about how she’s really feeling. Her home in California feels more and more like a memory than where she is meant to be. A story about loss, grief, and the memories we keep, this coming-of-age novel deals with the holes that are left behind after the loss of a loved one. The story rings true to how a teenager may cope with the loss of a parent, especially without the help of a professional to deal with the grief and an absentee parent who is struggling with their own grief. Almost all characters are heterosexual, white, and cisgender.