After the death of her father, Gilda Joyce takes control of her life through “storytelling” – though some might bluntly call it lying. Her imagination and drive earn her a trip to California for the summer where she meets a long-lost uncle, his daughter … and perhaps even a ghost. (Grade level 6+.)
Gilda Joyce: Psychic Investigator by Jennifer Allison
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Ah, the beloved Quirky, Notemaking Narrator, in the tradition of Anastasia Krupnik and Harriet the Spy. Perhaps my cooled affection is because I encountered Gilda as an adult, though I am still pretty quirky and I still take lots of notes… Regardless, Gilda Joyce is a lovely character, and I can see why several students have regarded her with such great affection, but some small something is missing for me. A hallmark of such characters is a sweetly desperate earnestness; Gilda Joyce certainly has that, but (and please take this with a grain of salt, since I don’t criticize authors for being different from their characters and I don’t actually claim to know anything about this author’s personality) perhaps Jennifer Allison could use a bit of earnestness herself?
