BLINDFOLD

by Sandra McCuaig ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 15, 1990

YOUNG BROTHERS JUMP TO DEATHS: LOVED SAME GIRL"" reads the headline; months later the girl, 15-year-old Sally O'Leary, tries to unravel the grief and guilt of the tragic events whose misrepresentation has been part of her trauma. Sally first met Benji and his blind older brother, Joel, at a school debate on life after death--a possibility that fascinates Joel. As Sally gradually reveals in excerpts from her diary, in memories she confides to the reader, and in conversations with the psychiatrist to whom she's sent as a seriously disturbed truant, Joel later seeks her out to pursue their debate. Benji, whose parents require him to be Joel's guide and companion, makes a third in their growing friendship. It's never quite more than that; though Benji and Sally are attracted to each other, Benji ""must not take that hope, or enjoy your love when it is what my brother wants most."" Joel seeks meaning in New Age philosophy and the occult; and, trying to divert him from what they perceive as perilous ideas, Joel and Sally concoct a horoscope that Joel disastrously misconstrues. McCuaig, an Australian journalist and playwright, sharply delineates the unique characters who perform this modern drama and stages it to build suspense as its complexities unfold. An engrossing, beautifully written story involving fierce rebellion for forgivable cause--a topic with perennial appeal.

Pub Date: April 15, 1990

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 167

Publisher: Holiday House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1990

Categories: CHILDREN'S