Writers and editors often talk about the importance of the first sentence and the first page.  If a story doesn't hook a reader from that first page, you're sunk -- kids especially will not waste their time on a book that doesn't hold their interest.  Thus it was with great interest I was hooked by opening page of Kathryn Fitzmaurice's debut novel, The Year the Swallows Came Early.  I am unapologetically a California native.  I've lived there twice, once as a child and once as an adult, for a total of about 16 years -- they longest I've lived anywhere.  So when the opening page refers to both the Pacific Ocean and See's candy . . . I won't stop reading.  However, it's the character's voice, so honest and real, that truly grabbed me, and her observations that something (in this case, a house) can look perfect from the outside, but inside, there is a different story.

And that's the story of eleven year old Eleanor "Groovy" Robinson, who experiences a lot of growing up in spite of herself, and teaches some of her friends and family members important lessons as she learns them.  The basic plot: Groovy is a foodie, loves to cook, and prides herself on knowing the perfect meal for every emotion and occasion.  Her quirky mother -- a beautician -- checks her horoscope to know how to plan her day.  At the outset, Groovy's dad -- the person she feels most connected to, who knows the real Groovy -- is arrested while the two of them are walking to town.  The first worst part of it is finding out her mother called the cops.  The second worst part is finding out it's because Groovy's dad gambled away her inheritance, the money she was going to use to go to culinary school when she got older.  Subplots involving both peers and adults explore various aspects of relationships and forgiveness.  Throughout the story, the motif of the swallows returning symbolizes stability, something all of the book's characters crave but seems just out of reach.

A book full of realistically drawn characters coupled with prose that reads like poetry, The Year the Swallows Came Early introduces Kathryn Maurice as an exciting & talented new voice in the world of children's books.  Her Web site has video at the mission in San Juan Capistrano where the swallows return each year, as well as discussion questions and information about the author.  You can also read about her in a newspaper article online.


The Year the Swallows Came Early