Amazon Summer Sanctuary Category:  Young Adult/Teen Publisher: Luminis Books ISBN-10:  1935462342 Type: Fiction Pages: 194 Copyright: 2010 ISBN-13: 9781935462347 A home-schooled preacher's kid meets a homeless teen at his local library and persuades her to live secretly in his church for the summer. In Summer Sanctuary, Matthew, a twelve-year-old preacher’s son, plans to spend the summer researching his theory that Einstein’s work on time dilation is biblical: “One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” He meets Dinah, a temporarily homeless teenager, at his local library and convinces her to live secretly in his church for the summer. Rich in literary allusions and humor, this novel overflows with music, poetry and science all appealing to and suitable for middle grade readers.  Laurie Gray creates a safe place for tweens and teens to appreciate and value their own experiences as well as the diverse experiences of others. Matthew and Dinah come from very different worlds, yet they form a genuine friendship that shows how connected we all are. The book addresses very real social issues such as homelessness, poverty and even sexual assault without using profanity or situations that are inappropriate for this age group. Part muse and part siren, Dinah’s goal is to avoid foster care. Her friendship comes with the heavy price of keeping a significant secret from his parents and at times being less than honest, if not actually lying. But Matthew perseveres, developing his own conscience and personal accountability, knowing God is in on his secret. Matthew initially misjudges Dinah, whose name actually means “good judgment” in Hebrew. Matthew learns about himself as he learns about Dinah and becomes more accepting of himself as he accepts her. Gray’s readers will, too.       Excerpt Dinah broke the silence. "Why are you being so nice to me?" she asked. She was combing her fingers through the grass and propellers, watching intently as the blades bounced right back up, twirling the propellers in the air. I didn't know what to say. I couldn't very well tell her that I watched her dig my sandwich out of the trash yesterday, and I was just dying of curiosity. "You just seem different--more interesting than most of the people I see around here." I leaned back on my elbows and stretched my feet out in front of me. "Why did you agree to have lunch with me?" "I was hungry," she said simply, rising to her feet and wiping her hands on the back of her jean shorts. She walked around the maple tree, hugging it with one arm as she walked. Then she turned around and walked the other way, hugging the tree with her other arm. She stopped right in front of me. I had to look straight up to see her face. "You seem different, too," she admitted. "In a good way." She sat down and relaxed a little, leaning back against the tree. "Can you keep a secret?" she asked. I hesitated. How many times had my parents talked to me about good secrets and bad secrets? Could I promise to keep a secret without knowing what kind of a secret it was? "I can keep a secret that needs to be kept." "I mean it, Matthew." She sat forward, hugging her knees. "If I tell you something, you have to promise not to tell anyone." Just the way she said it I could tell it was a really serious secret. "I promise," I said, knowing that I would keep Dinah's secret no matter what and hoping I wouldn't regret it.

Book Illuminations
Matthew is dreading the summer ahead of him. Not only is his best friend, Kyle, visiting relatives for the summer, but now Matthew’s mom is pregnant again. Instead, he meets Dinah at the library and Matthew begins looking forward to each new day. Dinah is unlike anyone Matthew’s ever met. She’s temporarily homeless whereas Matthew’s world revolves around his family. How will the friendship between Matthew and Dinah change them both?

Laurie Gray does a magnificent job with character development in SUMMER SANCTUARY. Matthew’s voice shines through her narrative as we see a young boy in a small town beginning to grow up. Dinah, on the other hand, is a bit more worldly but she hasn’t lost that innocence of childhood entirely. Matthew applies the lessons of helping others instilled in him by his family whereas Dinah learns that there is still goodness in the world as not everyone is like Jerry.

There’s an innocence to this tale and perhaps that is part of the appeal. Laurie Gray doesn’t shy away from the fact that evil can and does exist but the friendship between Matthew and Dinah provides a sense of security and safety to both of these characters. It is a solid reminder of the innocence and joy of those youthful friendships, where the most important thing is spending time with a best friend and no one cares what a person wears or where they come from.

SUMMER SANCTUARY is a beautifully written tale that should appeal to all ages. Laurie Gray captures the heart of what it is to be young and her characters reflect that joy. The contrast between the homeless girl and the home schooled son of a preacher isn’t as sharp as one might expect as Laurie Gray shows the similarities that are there if only a person reaches for them.


Bookloons
Twelve-year-old Matthew faces a boring summer. He is homeschooled. His holiday includes a research project on Einstein's Theory of Relativity and not much else, since his best friend will be away visiting his grandparents. Matthew is the eldest of four children, all boys. His dad is a preacher and his stay-at-home mom is pregnant with a daughter. Matthew's life is secure, but he is about to find out that this isn't true for everyone.

Matthew sees Dinah for the first time outside the library. At first he thinks she's a boy. There's something uncomfortable about the way she's watching him. When he goes back inside the library he checks to see if she leaves, but she's retrieving something from the trash can. Stunned, he watches from behind tinted glass as she eats the leftover half sandwich he tossed into the bin.

Later Dinah enters the library. He realizes she's a girl and introduces himself to her. At first she's unfriendly, but on his next trip to the library she's there again. This time she tells him her name is Dinah and that she is fourteen. They share Matthew's lunch and a real friendship begins to develop.

Dinah is Hebrew for good judgment, which Dinah often shows that she possesses. However she's homeless, and vulnerable while she waits for her mother to return. She doesn't share where her mother is with Matthew, only that no one must find out that she's on her own. Little by little Dinah shares her life with Matthew. He keeps her secrets while finding ways to help keep her safe.

This quiet, sweet book about friendship is a rare jewel. Dinah learns to trust and Matthew discovers that friendship includes more than just hanging out together.


TCM Reviews
This is a wonderful book. Any writer wanting to create a work of fiction that is appealing and spiritually fulfilling for teens or young adults would do well to read this before embarking on their journey. Both Matthew and Dinah are warm, engaging and likeable young people. Matthew’s insight into his family situation is extremely well portrayed, allowing him to understand and respond to Dinah’s homelessness in a way that is both wise and quite innovative.

I particularly liked the way Ms. Gray created a story for and about teens that is rich in spirituality and has absolutely no need for sex or profanity. This is the type of book a librarian loves to pull off the shelf and hand to a teen reader looking for something that is a fun read with a healthy message. I look forward to more work by this author.