Murdock, Catherine Gilbert. Dairy Queen, a novel.

MURDOCK, Catherine Gilbert. Dairy Queen, a novel. Houghton Mifflin. 278p. c2006. 0-618-68307-0. $16.00. JS*

Fifteen-year-old D.J. is the only daughter in a family of dairy farmers. Her older brothers are football heroes, now gone off to college. Her younger brother plays football but is profoundly silent. In D.J.'s family, emotions are not discussed. As a result, the rift between D.J.'s father and her two older brothers remains a chasm. D.J. is the one called upon to pick up the pieces for her injured father. She is a workhorse, spending her summer days shoveling manure, baling hay, and milking cows. In fact, she begins to feel as if she is a cow, doing only the expected. Enter Brian Nelson, football star of the rival high school, who spends the summer training under D.J. D.J. not only fails in love but decides she wants to play football, too, at her own high school--something no one expects.

These characters are all flawed but likable. D.J., in her silence, has a lot of time to ponder who she is and what she wants. Her task over the summer is to learn to speak her mind because, as the book points out, "When you don't talk, there's a lot of stuff that ends up not getting said." This is a highly readable novel with interesting characters and a valuable theme of learning to express emotions and reach out to others. Myrna Marler, Assoc. Prof. of English, BYU, Provo, UT

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

S--Recommended for senior high school students.

*--The asterisk highlights exceptional books.