I won Jennifer Gooch Hummer's Girl Unmoored in a Goodreads giveaway. I was already intrigued by the premise when I signed up for the contest, and when I started reading my copy I was quickly entranced. Girl Unmoored is the coming-of-age story of Apron Bramhall, a thirteen year old girl in the mid-eighties who is simultaneously dealing with the loss of her mother, her father's relationship with a nurse who cared for her ailing mother -- a woman Apron is convinced hates her, and the abandonment by her best friend, who has now taken up with the meangirl that has been their sworn enemy. In the midst of all this, Apron meets Jesus (well, Mike, the actor who played him in a community theater's production of Jesus Christ, Superstar.) Through Mike and his boyfriend, Chad, and their friends she encounters at their floral shop, Apron learns about tolerance and, especially, about what is truly love.

In my opinion, Apron Bramhall is one of the most endearing characters I've encountered in a long time. I should make a disclaimer that I would be just about Apron's age during the time in which her story is told, so relating to her was easy. I clearly remember those times, when my friendships and even my family was shifting, and when the world, too, was changing with the recent discovery of AIDS.
Besides Apron, there were other characters I adored, from her well-meaning if, at times, misguided, father who teaches her Latin, to Mike, who is so good he "must be related to the real Jesus", to Chad, Mike's funny and flamboyant boyfriend.


When Apron feels abandoned by everyone, she finds her new friends Mike and Chad. Through a series of unfortunate and, at times, comedic, events, Mike and Chad initially find themselves sort of responsible for watching over Apron, although she'd say that she didn't need their supervision -- she's not a child anymore. And it's true. She deals with a lot and in a round about way finds herself making sure Mike and Chad are taken care of, as well as her father. Apron was real to me, and I'd want her to be my best friend or sister. She's smart, sassy, awkward, a bit of a geek, and caring. Not to mention, she can make a mean bouquet.



Jennifer Gooch Hummer's Girl Unmoored deals with issues of intolerance, of deception and manipulation, of violence, and of illness and saying goodbye. These are some serious topics, but all is told beautifully and in a way that anyone from middle grade to adult can appreciate. And I feel strongly that everyone should read it. My hope is that this novel becomes required reading for middle or high school students. I loved Girl Unmoored and will be looking forward to more from this author.