Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Reconstructing Amelia-Kimberly McCreight

Reconstructing Amelia


Kimberly McCreight

Harper, Apr 2 2013, $25.99

ISBN: 9780062225436



In Manhattan during a meeting with a key client, the temporary secretary interrupts attorney Kate Baron to take a call from Grace Hall as her fifteen year old daughter Amelia has been suspended for three days. She arrives by train at Park Slope’s "Brownstone Brooklyn" only to be greeted by first responders who tell her Amelia fell from the school’s roof to her death.



Stunned by what occurred, Kate is further shocked to learn her daughter allegedly committed suicide after being caught and suspended for plagiarizing an English assignment. Kate reluctantly accepts the alien concepts her daughter cheated and killed herself; as Amelia was a good teen who did volunteer work. Everything changes for grieving Kate when she receives a text that claims Amelia did not jump.



Rotating between a grieving and guilt-filled Kate trying to understand what happened and the last month in the life of her daughter, Reconstructing Amelia is an insightful family drama that digs deeply into how vicious and vindictive students can be. The key to this character-driven thriller is Amelia’s teen behavior seems genuine; and ergo anchors the profound look into first love and bullying especially towards those that are different from the in-crowd such as autism and being gay.



Harriet Klausner

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