When the Snow Fell by Henning Mankell

Mankell, Henning, When the Snow Fell. Delacorte Press. 2007. Pgs. 247. Language: G, Sexual Content: PG or PG-13 depending on the demographics(talks about seeing a girl naked and kissing a girls, but never sees one naked), Violence: G. When the first snow falls, Joel Gustafson treats it like his own personal New Year’s Eve. Now that he’s almost 14, he has set three resolutions: to see the sea for the first time, become a rock star, and to see a girl naked. Things get complicated, however, when his dad’s girlfriend breaks up with him, Joel gets humiliated in front of his whole class, and he befriends an elderly man in his neighborhood. Will Joel be able to achieve his resolutions? A slow-moving book that’s hard to read and get through. Although the story is fairly endearing and you can sympathize with Joel’s single-father, drunk a lot dad situation, the story falls short in interest level for most readers. Although this book would appeal to some boys, this book would not be a good addition to most school libraries. MS. NO. Reviewer: Jessica Moody, Librarian, Olympus Jr. High.