2006 book 139

Frances Park's When my Sister was Cleopatra Moon
I had some mixed feelings about this book. It revolves around two sisters, Cleo and Marcy, who haven't spoken in years; when the husband of Cleo, the other one, dies, she begs the younger to come stay with her. The story is told from the younger sister's perspective as she tries to deal with her niece and nephew and as she flashes back to the summer she was 14. The problem is that modern-day Marcy is really annoying! She's a total new age hippie who only eats soup and is forever meditating and spouting things like, "Don't poison what's natural! Don't lose what's real!" Flashback Marcy, on the other hand, struggling with adolescence, hero-worship of her sister, and a father away on business, is very likable and sympathetic. The older sister rarely rises above a caricature--which is perhaps fitting, given the younger sister is narrating--but I really enjoyed the flashback portions of the story. So, eh, B/B-.