ONE SHOT

Lorrie’s 15th summer developed, literally, differently from what she expected. Spending a year with her dad and stepmom while her mom moved to California, she anticipates a summer of lazing by the pool with her best friend Sarah. Instead, Sarah gets a job at a riding stable and Lorrie winds up assisting her stepmom, who has quit her law job to help a famous elderly photographer put her affairs in order. Though at first intimidated by the cranky 91-year-old woman, Lorrie is immediately drawn to Molly’s expressive photos of people, each one conveying a story—the Vietnam soldier, for instance. Noticing Lorrie’s interest in her photos, Molly offers her the use of her darkroom. This relationship and the photography correlation with life are compelling. Other nuances lend credibility and sensitivity: a budding romance with the young stable manager, Lorrie’s fear of horses, Molly’s frail health and eventual stroke, and refreshingly intelligent and adjusted divorced parents. Through the eye of the camera, Lorrie discovers her strengths, creativity, and the realization that humanity can be recorded in visual images. Believable, empathetic, and definitely in focus. (Fiction. 12-16)