Lion, Melissa. Upstream.

LION, Melissa. Upstream. Random House, Wendy Lamb. 149p. c2005. 0-385-74643-1. $15.95. JS *

You may recall that Melissa Lion wrote an article in KLIATT's March '05 issue, after the publication of her first YA novel, Swollen. Upstream continues to demonstrate her skill and her commitment to her YA readers: it's a wonderful story set in Alaska, narrated by a young woman recovering from a tragedy. Marty is the oldest of three sisters living with their mother, who works with the Northern Dames, an all-female road construction company. Their father is supportive, but rarely there. We only get hints at first about the disaster. We know Marty lost Steven, whom she loved deeply. She is trying to get through her last year of high school, but she is grieving even as she survives each day. We learn that Steven was an accomplished outdoorsman, who could hunt, fish, and survive in the Alaskan wilderness. Gradually, we discover that Marty had something to do with his death, but we don't know exactly what until near the end of the novel.

The sisters are amazingly close and loving, as is their mother--Marty would not get through this crisis without their strength and quiet support. A teacher at school, a young woman who moves into town from California to run the little movie theater where Marty works part time, the local policeman--each is a testament to how essential it is to quietly love a person who is hurting. Alaska itself, where Melissa Lion goes to fish, becomes real for those of us who don't know much about it--the whales, the fly-fishing, the dark cold of winter, the cozy social life in a small town (Northern Exposure comes to mind)--the reader has some sense of Alaska's uniqueness while immersed in Upstream. The irony is that Marty chooses to leave Alaska at the end, attending a college in Hawaii that will enable her to start anew, putting the sorrow behind her, but still keeping her close to the ocean she loves. A memorable story. Claire Rosser, KLIATT

J--Recommended for junior high school students. The contents are of particular interest to young adolescents and their teachers.

S--Recommended for senior high school students.

*--The asterisk highlights exceptional books.