by Michael D. Beil
Flap Copy Description:
Twelve-year-old Nicholas Mettleson is not happy when he finds out he and his ten-year-old twin sisters will be spending the summer in Ohio with their father's uncle, whom they barely know. But after the long train ride from New York City, Nicholas finds small-town life in Deming, Ohio, hard to dislike. Uncle Nick and his dog, Pistol, are both great, and the tower room, with its view of the lake, is all his. Best of all: moored out front is a sailboat, Goblin, and Uncle Nick has already promised sailing lessons.
Soon Nicholas has made a friend, Charlie, the girl whose curveball he can't come close to hitting, and has become an expert sailor. But the excitement really starts when he and the twins discover a hidden compartment in the tower room that conceals an old reel of movie film a notebook labeled "The Seaweed Strangler," and a love letter from someone named Franny to their father, written long ago.
Add swimming, bike riding, an overnight sailing excursion that doesn't go as planned, and, uh, his sisters jabbering in fake British accents, and it's a summer Nicholas will never forget.
My Thoughts:
Summer at Forsaken Lake is a magnificent middle-grade novel released earlier this year. The author, Michael D. Beil, has written a lovely story that conjures up the long summer days of childhood, while entertaining the reader with the extraordinary experiences of the main character - Nicholas. The great character development, colorful dialogue, and super descriptions of sailing, make Summer at Forsaken Lake a great novel for the reader aged 8 - 12.
To learn more about the author, Michael C. Beil, click here: http://www.michaeldbeil.com/summer_at_forsaken_lake
