Little Miss Sunshine meets Room in this quirky, heartwarming story of friendship, loyalty and discovery.
It's Newfoundland, 1986. Fourteen-year-old Bun O'Keefe has lived a solitary life in an unsafe, unsanitary house. Her mother is a compulsive hoarder, and Bun has had little contact with the outside world. What she's learned about life comes from the random books and old VHS tapes that she finds in the boxes and bags her mother brings home. Bun and her mother rarely talk, so when Bun's mother tells Bun to leave one day, she does. Hitchhiking out of town, Bun ends up on the streets of St. John's, Newfoundland. Fortunately, the first person she meets is Busker Boy, a street musician who senses her naivety and takes her in. Together they live in a house with an eclectic cast of characters: Chef, a hotel dishwasher with culinary dreams; Cher, a drag queen with a tragic past; Big Eyes, a Catholic school girl desperately trying to reinvent herself; and The Landlord, a man who Bun is told to avoid at all cost. Through her experiences with her new roommates, and their sometimes tragic revelations, Bun learns that the world extends beyond the walls of her mother's house and discovers the joy of being part of a new family -- a family of friends who care.
I received this book from Early Reviewers at LibraryThing. I didn't know anything about it or the author, but the synopsis looked interesting. Although it was aimed more at younger readers, it was a book that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was a fairly quick read, but it touched on some fairly deep themes and questions. The main character, Bun O'Keefe, is hard to dislike, as are many of the characters that she meets along the way.
The story takes place in Newfoundland in the 1980s. The main character is quite naive, but also very smart. Her 300lb hoarding mother tells her to get out, so she does, believing that she has been ordered to live for good. She ends up in the city and is fortunate to meet a young busker who takes her under his wing, giving her a place to live. The boarding house is inhabited by an eclectic group of people, all with a story to tell and a life that has not always been easy. There were a lot of really funny moments, but also some quite heartbreaking ones. Many of the characters' stories unravel as the book unfolds, but a couple of tragic things occur that cause a change in Bun's situation. I don't want to give any spoilers, so I'll leave it at that.
The book is probably aimed at middle school or young teen readers, but it could be read and enjoyed by anyone.
