Rich in Love

Ah, these juvenile narrators: they think they know it all. Lucille Odem has it all figured out. She can fix her broken family and heal her parent’s broken hearts—because of course she can. For me, the pleasure of a great young adult narrator is watching as even the smartest of these smarty pants comes to learn that we all have blind spots and that it’s often the things we can’t see or don’t know that are the most important part of the equation. What a sweet book this is.  

Having read this novel a number of times, I am always drawn into its emotional depth. The departure of 17-year-old Lucille Odom’s mother Helen has a shattering effect on Warren, Lucille’s father, and his paralysis intensifies Lucille’s coming of age. Warren’s regression into a kind of adolescent state forces Lucille into the role of parent. She must take control in ways that are at the limit of her competence. Lucille says, “I don’t know now whether the disappearance of my mother was like a trigger mechanism setting off the series of surprises that was to follow. There is no… show more.