Cemetery Songs

by Julie Gilbert

When Polly Stone’s birthmother dies, she feels lost and adrift. How do you mourn someone you never knew? Even the dead, whose final thoughts Polly can hear, offer no advice.

Instead Polly fails her classes, alienates her friends, gets fired from her summer job, and accidentally sets fire to the high school. At a loss, Polly’s parents ground her and insist she volunteer at the local archives.

The dusty boxes are boring, but Polly is intrigued by her assignment: mapping an abandoned Black settlement on the edge of town. At the very least, it gives her time to examine her confused feelings for Billy Meyer, a former classmate who is also blackmailing her.

Amid weedy tombstones, Polly and Billy encounter the charming ghost of Harrison Card, who died in 1924. Sensing there’s more to the story than Harrison can recall, the unlikely trio investigates the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death.

The discoveries are unnerving, especially since the ugly racist history reflects some of Polly's own experiences as a biracial teenager. Past and present collide when Polly's attempts to help Harrison go tragically wrong. As Polly grapples with the consequences of her actions, she must decide if she is brave enough to heed the wisdom of the dead.

Genres: Young Adult, Book Club

245 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 15, 2020

About the author

Although Julie Gilbert’s masterpiece, The Adventures of Kitty Bob: Alien Warlord Cat, has sadly been out of print since Julie last stapled it together in the fourth grade, she continues to write.

Julie is the author of Cemetery Songs, a young adult novel about adoption, identity and the ghosts of the past. She has written several books for Capstone/Stone Arch Books, including the Dark Waters series and several titles in the Girls Survive series. Her novels consider themes of identity and belonging, along with a healthy dose of fantasy and magic. Her short fiction, which has appeared in numerous publications, explores topics ranging from airport security lines to adoption to antique wreaths made of hair. She is especially committed to diversity in her writing.

Julie is also a librarian. She loves working in libraries because she learns something new every day. Although she has also published extensively in the field of library science, her scholarship tends to have fewer plot twists and interesting characters than her novels and short stories.

Reviews

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Apollonia (Polly) Stone is a 17 year old high school jr, an adopted child, grounded until the summer is over, lifeguard and works in the archives, oh yeah she is also a Death Singer.

Death singers hear the last thoughts or words a person has before they die. Someone knows this and is blackmailing her because they have more then one secret that she doesn't want getting out.

It is doing work mapping at an old graveyard that she stumbles upon a ghost who not only does she hear sing their last thoughts but who can hear her too.

Cemetery Songs isn't just a young adult novel about a girl who hears the dead it deals with race, adoption and working through loss and abandonment.

Over all I liked this story, there are a few issues for myself personally. Falling for the person who is blackmailing you being it. But then again Polly hasn't been in the right head space for sometime and isn't making all the best decisions in life.

Would I read anything else by Julie Gilbert, yes. I am not opposed to it. This was well written and clearly researched. With additional reading listed at the back of the book.

3.5 stars

The cover is stunning.

Thank you Xpresso Tours for giving me a copy for review.

This review and others can be found at I Can Has Books?

[Inkslinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC provided by Julie Gilbert via Xpresso Book Tours. All opinions are mine and freely given.

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12-19: 'Cemetery Songs' by Julie Gilbert is the story of Apollonia Stone.. a girl who can hear the final thoughts of the dead. Struggling with her circumstances, a biracial teenager adopted into a transracial family who lives in one of those small towns with minimal diversity, her path to self-acceptance is littered with challenges.

When she finds out her birthmother has died, she starts to slip. In an emotional spiral, she accidentally sets fire to the high school, falls way behind in her classes, drives away her friends, and gets suspended from her job. To make things even worse, a former classmate witnesses the fire incident and blackmails her into helping him break the law.

Despite the way things begin between them, Polly has mixed feelings for her extortionist.. Billy Meyer. She's a compassionate girl and things aren't great for him either. So, naturally the more she comes to know of his story, the more conflicted she finds herself.

Volunteering for the city archive, amidst a research trip to a local cemetery.. Polly discovers a ghost she can actually communicate with. Harrison Card.. a kind, charming teenager who died mysteriously in the 1920's.. spurs her curiosity and her determination to find out more about what happened to him.

I was really intrigued by the premise of the book, which I felt sounded creative and would deal with some serious real world issues. The first half though.. is both incredibly slow and quite dull. I understand about slow building backstories and developing characters. That wasn't the problem. It was just monotone story telling. Though there were multiple people in scenes, initially.. none of them had any real distinction. No unique voices to separate them.

Around the midway point there was a definitive shift in the narration and dialogue. As Billy and Harrison emerged more openly across the pages, those personalities finally began to unfold. The voices of both boys and Polly becoming clearer.. brighter. From that point on, I was hooked. Though my main investment was in Billy and Polly.. I was eager to see how Harrison's story played out as well.

As for those important topics.. I just didn't think they were done as well as they could have been. Despite the author's personal background, the prose didn't feel as if it connected with the important issues that the story addressed. Likewise, aspects of Harrison's story were interesting. The author did touch on some culturally significant history, but seemed to skim over much of the emotional and psychological affects of the despicable behavior experienced by the characters.. which left it feeling kind of thin.

That being said, Gilbert is still a solid writer. The story is concise and well-told. After the midway point, which I just feel was a little too long to wait to get things moving.. I eagerly poured through the rest of the text.. and she did have me blinking back tears a couple of times. Just, not necessarily where I think she should have.

All-in-all, regardless of the few constructive criticisms above.. it's a worthwhile read. If for no other reason than to open eyes to some of the horrors of the past.. present.. and probably still the future ahead, to encourage the reader to learn more about these types of incidents on their own, and to raise awareness of the world around us.. to the real things others are still struggling with every day.. give this book a chance.

PURCHASE LINKS: AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | BOOK DEPOSITORY | BOOKSAMILLION | INDIGO | KOBO | WATERSTONES

[Linda Bowitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This young adult book has everything going on: racial issues, romance, supernatural, teenage angst, believable characters and an engrossing plot. Neither boring nor confusing, it’s a great read from beginning to end.

[Avril · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author/Librarian Julie Gilbert writes novels about identity and belonging. In this story, Polly Stone lives with her white, adoptive parents in semi-rural Minnesota. When Polly’s biological mom dies from cancer, she runs across state lines to make it to the funeral or at least visit her grave. The police find Polly and return her back home.

While mourning her loss, she decides to burn her adoption papers in a pile of kindling close to her school. The fire gets out of control and burns school property. Unable to focus on school, she takes time off planning to catch up over the summer and start her senior year in the fall. Polly struggles to get the work done.

Polly’s only solace is her volunteer work at the local archive where she is mentored by the town’s archivist, Tasha. Tasha is Black and supportive of Polly’s Black identity. They talk about HBCUs and have conversations like this: “People are always asking if they can touch my hair.” Tasha rolls her eyes. “Same. What else?” “Well, people stare a lot when I’m with my family, although that’s more of an adoption thing.” “It's a race thing, too.” “Yeah, and sometimes strangers ask dumb questions, like where I’m from. Or they’ll tell me how exotic I look or they say, ‘So, what are you?’”

Polly and Tasha work on a research project together on property that’s about to be developed. They come to discover that the old cemetery may be a significant and historic sight as it was part of a Black settlement.

Polly knows a lot more than she and Tasha can discover from the archives, but how? Polly is able to communicate with a boy who is buried in the cemetery. With his help, they piece together the tragic tale of his demise which is related to why his spirit cannot rest. Can they help each other heal and move on?

[Nancy (The Avid Reader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Polly Stone has been able to hear the dead talk ever since she was a little girl. She learned at a young age to keep her ability a secret from everyone as they would not understand. Yeah, I imagine if you went around telling people that you could hear the dead talk then they would want to lock you up and throw away the key.

One day Polly sees and hears a dead guy talking to her. Polly learns all about this guy's life and about the mystery surrounding his death. Polly decides to help this guy, Harrison Card finds out what really happened when he died and what lead up to his death.

Polly was having a bad time the summer she met Harrison. She was failing all her classes and keeping secrets from her parents. Polly also learns this summer that her birth mother died. Polly wants to visit her birth mother's home hoping to find answers to questions that she has had about herself all these years.

But her parents are not up for her visiting right now but Polly decides to go on her own but she is caught and brought back home where she must face the consequences for her actions.

Cemetery Songs is a very touching story with lots of mystery and suspense between its pages. Once I picked up Cemetery Songs the mystery and suspense kept me jumping from page to page waiting to see how it all turned out. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to see what happened to Harrison on that horrific night so long ago.

Cemetery Songs is a great little story that I would recommend to anyone looking for a little mystery in their life and maybe a ghost or two that will take you into the past. One-click your copy of Cemetery Songs today!

[Cranky - The Book Curmudgeon · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Cranky Stars


Over the years, things don’t really change much. Being different in so many ways is hard and challenging for a person. This book was interesting from beginning to end. For me, it hits home, not for the same exact reasons it did for the author but similar.


Polly is the main character who has struggles for different reasons from the beginning, since she was small. Even as she is older now, she still struggles with her differences. Some differences can cause others to exploit you in ways that make your stomach turn, but it’s not always as it seems. Billy is the guy she can’t stand and the one giving her trouble. All the characters fit together and work well. Polly learns more about her “differences” and her differences help others. Good book. I would recommend it to others.

[Stephanie Maris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really intrigued by the the summary of "Cemetery Songs", and after reading it, the idea of a girl who can hear the last thoughts of the dead is still enticing. The book started off a bit slow, but once I got into it, it was hard to put down. There are strong topics relevant in today's world, as Polly deals with being a biracial girl in a mostly white community, though I feel at times the author relied on the reader to understand her character's strong emotions a little too much. The emotions were there, but sometimes lacked context for readers who may not have experienced such things and therefore would have more trouble understanding. Overall, I really liked the book, especially once the second half picked up the pace. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a quick mystery novel.

[Christine Staloch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a girl named Apollonia Stone who is growing up in a small predominately white Minnesota town being a Black girl adopted into a white family. After finding out her birth mother dies, Apollonia struggles with her grief as well as her experiences with racism. On top of that, she also has the ability to hear the last thoughts of dead people. During her volunteering in the archives, she stumbles across Harrison, who has passed away but she can actually have a dialogue with him. This is a unique situation and she try’s to figure out what it means and how to help him. This was a captivating read that tackles tough racial issues. Well worth the read!

[Margot · Rating 5 out of 5]

A young biracial woman struggles with the usual teenage issues plus her adoption, and her ability to hear the last words of dead people. Based in an imaginary MN town, we also learn a bit about Black history in Minnesota. I highly recommend this YA novel to anyone seeking a great story with characters you’ll love. Thanks Julie Gilbert, Gustavus Adolphus College, for sharing your gift of research and writing with us.

Per Amazon: Poignant and uplifting, Cemetery Songs is a compelling YA about a girl, a ghost, and the graveyard that sends them both on a journey of self-acceptance.

[Bethany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved getting the chance to read this new Minnesota book!

[Kaylee B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book after a personal recommendation from one of my professors, and it did not disappoint. This book is rich with historical information. The book picks up a lot in the second half, but the first half was still engaging. I would certainly read this book again.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

You read the blurb, so I’ll get straight to the review. First off, I loved the character of Apolonia aka Polly. She’s at a point in her life where she’s confused, angry, and full of grief after losing her birth mother, and growing up in a Caucasian community with Caucasian adoptive parents.

In some ways, I found myself thinking of the late Richard Wagamese’s For Joshua, because he was a Sixties Scoop child, and was also full of the same feelings growing up far away from the Anishinaabeg, his people. The author captured the confusion and longing teenagers undergo when placed in a community where the colour of their skin is different as they attempt to search for their true identity.

I especially enjoyed the lost friendship between Henrietta and Polly. Both were African American, yet Henrietta seemed content with her surroundings, but Polly struggled.

Read more here: https://maggieblackbird.com/2020/12/1...