In Summer Light - Softcover

Grade 6-12 It's hard to say which is more impressive in this literate, complex storyOneal's use of language, imagery and color or the development of her finely drawn characters. Kate, the daughter of a world-famous artist, feels only bitterness toward her egotistical father, whose approval she so desperately wants. While at home recuperating from mononucleosis, she falls in love with a graduate student assisting her father. Through Ian's understanding and support, she is able to stem some of the anger she harbors toward her father. The story unfolds slowly, as Oneal exposes Kate's talent as an artist, her refusal to paint and her gradual return to it. The change in Kate's attitude toward her father is paralleled by her ability to complete, finally, an English paper on The Tempest , a paper that she can finish only after she can deal with her dislike of Prospero and his similarity to her father. All is not resolved in the end, but Kate does come to understand herself and is on the way toward a better relationship with her frustrated, aging father. Artist that she is, Kate sees the world in colors; Oneal shows her audience Kate's world through her own use of color. A coming-of-age novel that is light-years above most others. Trev Jones, "School Library Journal"
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