Shooting the Moon

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Shooting the Moon

By Frances O'Roark Dowell

I think it is a rare and true artform when a short book can be so powerful. This book hits close to home because it is about a girl who's dad is a colonel and her brother enlists in the army during the Vietnam War and my dad fought in the Vietnam War. To me this is just a completely perfect example of writer's craft. I think it was brilliant of the author to tell the story from the perspective of a 12-year-old girl whose older brother goes off to war. She can relay the feelings of everyone: her mother, her father, her brother, other kids' whose siblings are in the war, people she interacts with on the base. This book says so much without having to come out and directly say it. It is so interesting how easily the character goes from being pro-war to anti-war, how easily she seems to grow up, how connected you can become with the characters. It is nominated for the Rebecca Caudill award and I truly believe it is worthy of it.