Undercover by Beth Kephart
After reading “Nothing But Ghosts,” I immediately got onto my library’s website and requested another one of Beth’s books, I just loved it that much. The one I grabbed first was “Undercover.”
Elisa is a young girl with a poetic soul. She is her father’s daughter and doesn’t really relate well with her mother and older sister, which makes life difficult when her father has to go away for an extended period of time for work. To make life even more complicated, Elisa starts to fall for the boy who she is providing with poetry to woo another girl.
Oh my goodness, is Kephart’s writing ever gorgeous in this book! Just beautiful, and not only when she is showcasing Elisa’s poetry. Something about the whole thing reminded me of Laurie Halse Andersen’s work – because of the gorgeous writing, not because it seemed derivative. I felt like Elisa held me at a distance, didn’t allow me to get close, but it worked for me in this case, where usually it would annoy me. She was so distanced from everyone since her father was away that it made sense that she would keep even the reader at an arm’s length.
If you’re a literary fiction fan who isn’t convinced about the whole young adult literature thing, please, please try Beth Kephart. Now I know why Amy was always raving about Beth, she writes consistently strong books.
Buy this book here and support this blog. Purchase from:
Powells.
A local independent bookstore via Indiebound.
Amazon.
Source: library
Id never heard of Beth–thank you for the heads up! She sounds like a worthy cause.
I love Beth’s writing too. I haven’t read this one . . . yet.
.-= Beth F´s last blog ..Wordless Wednesday (October 27) =-.
I loved this book, too. You are right, Elisa’s poetry is very beautiful, but the rest of the book is an example of lyrical writing as well. I especially liked the scenes of Elisa’s ice-skating at her pond.
This book sounds amazing. I still haven’t read more of Beth’s writing, but I think this will be my next one.
This sounds like a great read. Thanks for your review.
.-= A Bookshelf Monstrosity´s last blog ..Waiting On Wednesday (6) =-.
I loved this one too! She is such a beautiful writer!
I loved this book too. Elisa reminded me of myself at that age, so I could really relate to her.
I’ve never heard of this author but I’m always on the lookout for fantastic YA novels/authors, so thanks for the review!
.-= Stephanie´s last blog ..Library Loot =-.
Judging by the 2 books I’ve read so far, you can’t go wrong with Beth Kephart!
I can’t wait to read this one. Thanks for the review!
.-= S. Krishna´s last blog ..Haunting Bombay – Shilpa Agarwal =-.
Might I thank you for this gorgeous, gorgeous review.
A hug to you…
Thank YOU for writing such lovely books! Now I’m waiting with great anticipation until “The Heart Is Not A Size” comes out.
I will so be ordering this book after November. It sounds just fabulous and I loved “Nothing But Ghosts.”
I included it in my to-read pile. I’m always looking for another young adult book to read
Sounds like a great book! I’ll have to add it to my TBR pile.
.-= Amused´s last blog ..Patron Saint of Librarians =-.
I just recieved House of Dance for review and can’t wait to read it. I think I need to add this story as well.
I find it interesting that Beth writes the father as primary caregiver in many of her books. As a sister to a single father I adore that aspect of any book and knowing an author embraces the father/daughter relationship encourages me to read all their work even more.
Yay! Beautiful review and I’m so glad that you are enjoying Beth’s books. And I’m so excited to see more people discovering her through your reviews…the ripple effect!
I really need to try this author. Everyone seems to be a fan!
I think I’m going to follow your footsteps and get this one from the library too since i just finished Nothing But Ghosts.