D, My Name Is Danita - Softcover

Like earlier protagonists of this alphabetical series, eighth-grader Danita learns something about a parent that forever alters her family's balance. First it's mysterious phone calls; then Danita keeps noticing the same red-sneakered 19-year-old, in too many situations to be coincidence. Even moderately astute readers will enjoy realizing long before Danita does that ``D.T.'' is her half-brother: born as the result of a high-school romance, Dad has never known of the boy's existence. The drama of a nice youth hoping to find a father but encountering a cold reception from an otherwise affectionate family man who simply freezes because he has no idea how to respond is sketched lightly here; the focus is on narrator Danita, who is the first approached by her brother, and who intervenes on his behalf--and, fleshing out the story, on her contrasting concerns with boys and a best friend. In a refreshing denouement, it's Mom (the last to know: Dad doesn't trust her reaction) who points out that D.T. should get a real welcome. No melodrama here; just another of Mazer's unique, believable families, coping despite their particular frailties. Again, light but nourishing, with plenty of reader appeal. (Fiction. 10-14) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Danita Merritt, 14, has the perfect family--at least her best friend, Laredo, thinks so. Mr. and Mrs. Merritt adore each other and dote on their two daughters, while Laredo rarely sees her divorced father. The picture changes when Danita meets the ubiquitous D.T. Goodman. The 19-year-old Californian is in town to locate his father, who is unaware of his existence. D.T. ultimately tells a shocked Danita that he is her half-brother, the offspring of Mr. Merritt's teenage romance with a schoolmate who chose to move west rather than disclose her pregnancy. Danita's first-person narrative reveals all the anguish and turmoil expected of someone in her situation, which she handles with remarkable maturity. Mazer's skilled writing allows her main character to be perceived in very human terms. Although the dialogue is syrupy at times, the compassion evoked for the offspring of unhappy alliances gives the novel considerable impact. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.