What Parents Should Know
Kids who want--or need--this book will love it, while others
will decisively pass over its plain-spoken strengths out of a
desire for distance from the subject.
Common Sense Media Review
This book is a demonstration of the devastating power of
simplicity. With breathtaking economy and precise strokes,
Barbara Park brings Mick Harte and his sister Phoebe to vivid
life. And because Park gives Phoebe such a distinct, genuine
voice, her reactions are real and familiar. One high school
freshman said he found the book both "realistic" and
"disturbing." Park moves the reader back and forth, from Mick
to his sister, gradually disengaging them, separating the
tightly interwoven strands of their lives, until Phoebe can
stand alone.
Park makes hardly a misstep. Is Mick a touch too perfect--too knowing, too independent, too human? Clearly, that's how Phoebe would see him. Phoebe herself rings true, as do her bereft, bewildered parents. She aches in confronting Mick's room and finds solace in his belongings. Sounding the depths of their sorrow, Phoebe and her father search for a way past their feelings of guilt. All these elements are tied together with enormous skill. Even the lesson about wearing bicycle helmets is made so directly and simply that it doesn't seem at all preachy. In fact, when the father wishes he had made Mick wear his, it's one of the book's most moving moments.
Not all young readers will want or be able to handle the questions Park asks. But those who do will find that, with MICK HARTE WAS HERE, "here" is a lasting place in their hearts.
Another, more lighthearted, book by Barbara Park is Skinnybones. Other books about dealing with the death of a child include Bridge to Terabithia and A Taste of Blackberries.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
