One Speck of Truth
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
A heartwarming and poignant story that explores the bonds of family and the importance of knowing your own history, from the critically acclaimed author of My Life with the Liars and the ALA Notable Book Forever, or a Long, Long Time
Alma has everything she needs, except answers to her questions. Her mother won’t tell her why her beloved stepfather, Adam, is suddenly gone this summer. Or about life in Portugal, where her parents met. Not even about her father, who Alma cannot find, no matter how many graveyards she searches with her best friend, Julia.
Then Alma’s mother shocks her by moving them both to Lisbon so Alma can fall in love with the vibrant city where her father grew up. There she discovers she has more family than she could have imagined.
She hopes Portugal holds the answers she’s been desperately searching for, but it turns out finding the truth may be more complicated than she, or her mother, bargained for.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This poignant novel explores the destructive power of secrets. Thoughtful 12-year-old narrator Alma roils with questions for her avoidant mother, Mercy, about her Portuguese father, whose tomb Alma looks for in local Pittsburgh graveyards, and about Mercy's unexplained recent split from Alma's stepdad, Adam. Carter (Forever, or a Long, Long Time) effectively heightens the tension when Alma learns on the first day of school that she's not registered for class; then, days later, that they're moving; and finally, at the airport, that they're headed to Lisbon. The city's romantic charm, the lure of meeting her father's family, and the toxicity of secrets propel Alma to explore on her own as she searches for more information about her dad. For much of the narrative, Alma's mother seems absent and unknowable beyond her absurd concealments, but as Adam encourages Alma during phone calls to find answers, Mercy's story and sacrifices come into focus. A compelling portrait of family and all its flaws, and the freeing power of the truth. Ages 8 12.
