TALLULAH FALLS

This story of a screw-up teen, 17-year-old “Tallulah,” grabs the reader and doesn’t let go. Tallulah attaches herself to Maeve, a 24-year-old free spirit who suddenly takes off for Florida, then calls Tallulah asking for notebooks she has left behind. Tallulah simply leaves with a boy she recently met, who robs and strands her in a tiny town in Tennessee. Stumbling through the dark, Tallulah finds an injured dog and gets a lift to the local veterinarian’s office. The grumpy vet gives her a temporary job while Tallulah waits for Maeve to rescue her. Maeve, however, may not be a reliable friend. While dealing with the life-and-death issues that exist in a vet’s office, Tallulah finds that she may not be a useless as she had thought. It’s an involving, nuanced character study that keeps the reader interested throughout. Honest and realistic—a winner. (Fiction. YA)