Nancy Woodruff spins a very good tale in her debut novel. In fact, she has a best seller on her hands until page 230, when an implausible plot line takes an abrupt turn south and crashes the story, the characters and the author's credibility. Woodruff's story begins with the Breeze family of Sheldrake, CT. Jennie Breeze has a pretty good life as a wife and mother in the tony suburbs. Her husband runs a landscaping business and their teen-age daughter, Tara, is making it through the difficult years with relative ease. As Tara's school year ends, the family is also awaiting a new addition, and unlike Tara, who was not planned and not expected, this baby is welcomed and wanted. When Jennie goes into labor, she insists that Tara be with her at the hospital, thus spoiling the girl's plans to go out with her two best friends and the 'new' boy in town, Matt Fallon. Tara's absence doesn't stop the three other kids from heading off to an unsupervised teen party. The girls get wasted, leaving driving duties to the ever-responsible, but inexperienced Matt. A horrific accident occurs when Matt's limited driving skills fail him, and Tara's two best friends are killed. Matt walks away, but is left with some very serious psychological wounds. When school lets out, no one enjoys the summer break. Jennie is suffering from the new baby blues. Her start-up business that plans high school reunions is not as organized as she would like, but she just can't seem to find the time or the energy to deal with the new baby and plan a party. Jennie's husband is headed into his busy time of the year and can offer little relief. Tara is inconsolable over the loss of her two best friends. Matt is ostracized by the community, who holds him responsible for the tragedy. Jennie knows something about being an outcast. She graduated valedictorian of her class, but wound up pregnant and married before she turned 19. Realizing Matt's situation, she offers him a job as her assistant for the summer months. Though tenuous at first, the boy and the woman work well together. Jennie has a lot of basic maternal instincts and a knack for knowing how to help Matt deal with his guilt. In turn, Matt gets Jennie organized for the summer's events and, with Jennie's care, he begins to find his way back from a self-imposed purgatory. Woodruff's debut was stunning until page 230, when she throws in what I think is a very inappropriate plot twist. Besides having an element of sheer surprise, the author raises issues that are just too complex to resolve before the story ends at page 256. I finished the book feeling ambushed, exhausted, and cheated out of a good story. Woodruff has a gift with prose and probably has a bright future as a writer. I just hope she's gotten the surprise element out of her system and settles into a more realistic style of plot development. Recommendation: Stop at page 229 and write your own ending!

Terry Matthews, Reviewer

Someone Else's Child is the kind of book you live in for a little while. After reading the first few chapters, I attempted to go back to my reality but found it nearly impossible. I was stuck in Connecticut, in early summer, trying to sort through the pieces of my life. The narrative flows smoothly between the two main characters, Matt and Jennie, and I found myself frustrated at being allowed only a passive presence in this story. I wanted to act out, I wanted to change the course of events, I was angered and embittered...I was completely hooked.

The story has so many tangents that at times I was annoyed, almost skimming paragraphs to find what I was most interested in. However, Woodruff ties it neatly together midway through the book, and lets you figure some things out for yourself before confirming them in the final chapters.

Nancy Woodruff has written a piece of contemporary literature with an Oprah's Book Club accessibility. I did not falter in my reading of this book, but I did go back to read paragraphs that sang with prose. I read a lot, about a book a week, and rarely am I so engrossed that I miss my favorite TV shows. (Sad but true.) Many a night found me curled up on the couch, nearly eating this book until I was finished. It is a quick and delicious read, and a book I know I will go back to when I am temporarily bored of my existence. Highly recommended.

I was swept away by this book; it puts you into the lives of the characters in a deep and profound way. I did not at all view it as a "light summer read", but rather as a purveyor of some deep and interesting truths.

So often our society villifies young people who've made a dreadful and tragic mistake, as Matt did. In this novel we can see from his point of view how ready he is to agree with the town, and how little he deserves that villification, and also how Jen is able to give him some small relief from that hatred and start him on a path of healing. At the end, however, the reader finds one, of several, reasons why the title is "Someone Else's Child". Jen's ultimate loyalty has to be to her own. And although, in using Jen and Matt as the two voices of the novel, the author keeps us a step removed from the horrific pain the parents of the dead girls feel, it is still acknowledged and woven thoroughly into the story.

As an inveterate reader, I highly recommend this book!

A review by Lacy

This book was about a group of boys named Levi, Jupiter and Possum. This story takes place back when slavery was a big issue, when the North and South were battling against one another. They were living in the north with Miss Amelia because they didn't want to have any part of the slavery. Levi always writes to his brother Austin who he doesn't see that often.

In this book there isn't just one plot there is a series of things going on in a lot of the letter there is a different topic and new things going on. Like when they were scared the bully was going to throw his dog into the river from the cliff and then the author starting talking about Levi having to take dance classes. I think that the author could have explained some areas better and put more detail in to what he was explaining. Some of the conflicts are expressed pretty well but some others really need some work on. I couldn't really follow a lot of the book because it was a hard book to get into. The length of this book was pretty fair. It probably should have been longer and add some more detail in it. I was happy when I finished the book; I thought it would never end. It was just so boring. The vocabulary of this book was easy to understand. I didn't have any trouble reading words but some of the sentence was confusing.

I would highly recommend you not to read this book. It is really hard to get into. This book was a very slow pace book. If you like being confused then I recommend this book to you but for the people like me who don't like being confused don't read the book.

Dear Austin, Right now Im out looking for Darcy, Juipters sister,Yesterday Black Rustlers stole her! Me and Jup have set out to find Darcy. Please don't worry while im out there. A body couldn't get nothin much don to him the wild. Don't worry Austin. I'll be saving y'all some letters as im out. Don't when i'll be sendin' 'em to ya'. Till then just stay come. Is how Levi talks to Austin thorough out the whole thing, in letters. AS they set out they meet the famous "Moses," a.k.a Hariet Truman. A black slave leader, the slave train, and suspence, history, and all around tightnes! I HIGHLY SUGGEST THIS TO READERS HOW LOVE TO READ! (of course.) And people how love to read about the stuf I like to read about, like this story. So go out and buy it!

I used this book with my fifth grade class. The author's ability to blend history, humor, and heart gave me just the story I was looking for to use on my unit about slavery.It totally hooked my students and I had to read much more each day than I had planned on!(They didn't want me to put it down!)I was also glad that the author didn't shy away from the truth and though the ending was hard it gave us a very moving and accurate description of the horrors of slavery- as much as a ten year old need digest. I would highly recommend this to both students and teachers, alike. M. Stevens