Emily Barth Isler

This book is a powerful and thought-provoking novel that explores the impact of a school shooting on a community and a young girl named Lucy. The book dives into the complexities of grief, trauma, and resilience as Lucy navigates a new school where everyone is still healing from the tragedy. Isler's writing is poignant and deeply empathetic, offering a sensitive portrayal of the emotional journey of her characters. The story heavily incorporates math into it as it is Lucy's favorite subject and way of understanding the world around her. The story encourages important conversations about mental health, healing, and forgiveness. Overall, "Aftermath" is a compelling read that leaves a lasting impact on its readers.… (meer)

Twelve-year-old violin prodigy Rosie goes on a violin strike. She's just lost her only friend as a result of her all-consuming violin schedule of rehearsals and performances, and she wants to know what it's like to be a regular kid. Rosie's mom takes Rosie's strike personally, and takes away all technology until Rosie agrees to play again - and, they're spending the summer with Rosie's maternal grandparents, who she doesn't know well (see: violin schedule). But in Connecticut, a strange thing happens: Rosie meets a girl in a shed on her grandparents' property...a girl with her mother's name, (Sho)Shanna.

Can anything Rosie says to this young version of her mom have an effect on her present-day mom? Can Rosie make her mom understand how her synesthesia makes many experiences overwhelming for her, and that she wants more balance in her life? And what about all the family history that Rosie doesn't know, and the "Hungarian song" her dying grandmother wants her to play?

Ultimately, Rosie gains the quality of attention she wants from her mother, a closer relationship with her grandpa, and the opportunity to learn more about her Jewish heritage and even have a bat mitzvah if she wants. She even regains a friendship with the friend she lost due to her violin schedule, who shows up to Rosie's grandma's funeral.

Each chapter is preceded by a musical term (e.g. fugue) and its definition.

Quotes

It's not simply that I dream in music....It makes sense to me, like a code in a language only I speak, and I can translate it into melody....It's simply the way my brain works. (1)

"...some things other people can't understand, so we don't share them."
That's how I knew I could never tell my mother about how I could see colors when I heard sounds. (74)

How can you love someone so much and also feel so angry at them? (78)

"Sometimes it feels like, if I had a choice, maybe I would choose to do it. But I don't have a choice." (Shanna to Rosie, 109)

I've never experienced a sound evolving like that... [re: Vienna the dog's sounds, 118]

And in a world where I have to pick my battles carefully, I've put my foot down about playing the violin. Every other battle is a small one to concede. (136)

"Sometimes we do things that aren't all that important to us because they matter to the people we love." (Shoshanna, 139)

I can't help but wonder if what I say to Shanna now could possibly change the future. (145)

"I don't believe in secrets...I don't think secrets are safe or healthy or helpful." (Grandpa, 173)

"Some things are too painful to share. Some memories are best left alone until we're able to tell them as the hard part of a much longer, much more beautiful story." (Grandpa, 175)

...it feels like the old rules have dissolved. There aren't new rules yet, and I get to make - and change - them as I go. I feel like I'm in control this time. (220)

How many generations of us have hidden something? And how many of us have hidden the same things? ...We hide our gifts because we're scared of standing out in the wrong ways. (237)

Anger plus sadness is purple. (284)

"You have a gift."
"But shouldn't I be the one who gets to decide how to use it?" (286)… (meer)

Lucy and her parents move to Virginia for a fresh start after her little brother Theo's death of a heart condition. On top of the ongoing grief, the move rattles Lucy's sense of stability. Not only is she the new girl, but she is a new girl to classmates who survived a school shooting back in third grade. Lucy feels she can't compare her grief to theirs and because her parents don't talk about Theo, she has few outlets to process her feelings. Math, her favorite subject, can't help her find answers. An empathetic teacher, a mime class, and an unlikely friendship help Lucy find the courage to voice her needs. This book is a real gut-punch, a timely and honest treatment of grief in the wake of tragedy.… (meer)