Mourning

Because Ebram comes from a close-knit family and is grounded in his faith, he sees beyond the strange appearances of the Shroudas to the good deeds they do in their community. It's what helps him decide to become a Shrouda himself and start a project he hopes will bring some childhood fun to his unfriendly new middle school, never mind the bullies who pick on him. 

My daughter was distraught when she learned that a girl she knew in middle school killed herself yesterday. She attended a candlelight vigil for the suicide victim at her high school where she was a freshman. No one knew why the girl killed herself, and it was a question everyone asked. Rumors were that she was being bullied. Whatever the reason, the message is the same: step out of your comfort zone to help someone in need.

Connections in "The Haunting"

The family baby sitter, Rachel, names the neighbors, mostly adults, for new residents Ebram and his siblings, Alyssa, Eric, and Angela. They're surprised to meet them for the first time at a children's birthday party for Eric and Angela!  Rachel also says there are two girls, Chloe and Zoe, who live a few blocks away. Not only are these girls invited to the same party because their dad is a colleague of Ebram's dad, but they live next door to one of Ebram's best friends!

There are much deeper links explored in this book, such as the link people have to each other despite their differences, including cultural and religious.  A group of tweens/teens that Ebram joins consists of Christians of various denominations linked together by their common goal to serve the Lord, the equilateral triangle worn on their clothing a reminder of their belief in the Holy Trinity.

Links that Bind

When our oldest son was in kindergarten in Nebraska, he befriended a quiet classmate who slowly came out of his shell. As their friendship developed, they wanted to go to each  other's house to play. Eventually, Chuck realized that he knew this boy's dad from his college days!  They'd both been in the drum and bugle corps at the college and graduated the same year.

I'm reminded of this because as arrangements were made for a book signing at Helotes Creek Winery with four Helotes area authors (including me), we learned that we were all members of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Helotes.  Then on the day of the event, I learned that fellow author Diana Fidone-Griggs lives in my neighborhood--on the same street, just houses away!