BONE BY BONE BY BONE

In 1951, 12-year-old David lives with his father and grandmother in the South. Pushed to be a doctor like his father, David resists buts plays along, and he and his father come to a testy arrangement in most things, including David’s friendships. Unable to keep David from playing with his best friend Malcolm, David’s father lays down a rule: “You ever let that nigger in [the house], by God, I’ll shoot him.” As David approaches his 13th birthday, he begins to understand the true horror of the connections between the KKK and his neighbors and family. Even as his friendship with Malcolm drifts, his own sense of the world grows, until the horrible night when turning 13 brings with it more than David ever banked on. The voice and setting here are fully realized and gripping. Even with scanty plot or narrative arc, this is a highly appealing and chilling read for history buffs and fans of historical fiction. (Historical fiction. 11-15)