Samuel West just wants to go back to when his Pa was alive and spinning wild tales. But Pa, the only parent Sam ever knew, died recently in a car accident. Now, Sam is dragged from Bayou St. George, La., by his paternal Aunt Jo, who's "stayed away... the past four Thanksgivings," to her home in Holler, Okla. Isolating himself, Sam is buried in "thoughts... like spiders that hid away in cracks anytime you tried to swat them." But when he finds a hollowed-out tree and "a cat with half a face" who leads him inside, he discovers a doorway to an alternate Bayou St. George where he's reunited with Pa. Ejected back into Holler and only able to visit his father at certain times each day, Sam befriends Edie, a fellow seventh grader with an absent father, and learns more about his Aunt Jo, a veteran and an amputee who organizes Narcotics Anonymous meetings. Soon, Sam must choose between the two worlds before he becomes trapped. Ventrella (Hello, Future Me) brilliantly renders Sam's gentle nature, defensiveness, and deep sadness; her evocative prose and the small but resonant cast shine, and Sam's voice effectively relays his path toward the other side of grief. Ages 8--12. Agent: Brianne Johnson, Writers House. (Sept.)

A grieving boy is given a way to see his dead father again. After Pa dies in a car accident, seventh grader Sam is taken away from Bayou St. George, Louisiana, by Aunt Jo--now a virtual stranger whom he hasn't seen in four years--to middle-of-nowhere Holler, Oklahoma. In Holler, he starts seeing an ugly, scarred gray cat, who leads him through the hollow of an eerie tree that transports him to a dreamy version of Bayou St. George. There, the cat turns into the Boy, a guide of sorts, and Sam's reunited with his father and the Colonel, an alligator that's a Bayou St. George legend. Too soon, Sam's sucked back through the portal--but it will open again, the Boy tells him, same time each day, though not indefinitely. Sam's pulled between the visits with his father (sometimes witnessing Pa's memories and trying to bring his father back with him), the budding connections he builds with Aunt Jo as he gains a new understanding for who she is as a person (a veteran amputee and Narcotics Anonymous leader), and the first kid to befriend him, kindred spirit Edie. The magic's rooted in evocative descriptions and strong emotions, perfectly suited to interplaying themes of truth and stories, just as Sam's grief-and-letting-go storyline echoes both Jo's and Edie's grounded-in-reality subplots. Lacking racial descriptors, characters default to White. Magically mesmerizing and moving. (Fantasy. 9-13) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

After his father dies, seventh grader Sam reluctantly moves to Pa's hometown in Oklahoma to live with his estranged aunt, Jo. He arrives at 3:45 p.m. -- the time Pa's car accident occurred -- and discovers a hollowed-out tree that becomes a temporary doorway, allowing Sam to briefly visit his father at that same time every day in a manifestation of Sam's old home in the dragonfly- and gator-filled swamps of Bayou St. George, Louisiana. A mysterious shape-shifting boy serves as Sam's guide: "I show the living what they need to see in order to let go." Except Sam doesn't want to let go, so he makes several attempts to permanently reunite with Pa. Meanwhile, the boy begins to show Sam his father's memories, revealing the truth behind Pa's larger-than-life stories and the secrets he never shared with Sam. These memories help Sam reconnect with his aunt (a veteran, amputee, and recovering drug addict who holds NA meetings at her house) and better appreciate all that he has in his new home, school, and friend Edie. Ventrella (Skeleton Tree, rev. 11/17; Bone Hollow, rev. 1/19) is no stranger to writing about family tragedy, death, grief, and loss, and she does so here frankly and compassionately. Sam's fraught thoughts and emotions as he struggles to say goodbye are realistically portrayed, and he's supported by strong secondary characters. Even if there are no easy answers for Sam, the heart-rending story and vividly described settings will captivate readers. Cynthia K. Ritter March/April 2021 p.101(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.