The Weight of the Sky, by Lisa Ann Sandell

Again, I'm all about form sometimes. This is one of those "prose-poetry" books. I enjoyed the story, though I think the form didn't really add to it. I just don't think you should use that particular form just because you can, it needs to add something to the story.

I like this one. Sarah's believable, though it's a little odd to small-town me to imagine a 17-year-old jetting off to live on a kibbutz in Israel, but okay. Despite the obvious differences (Israel, being Jewish, etc.), teenagers will identify with her. She's struggling to figure out who she is, in a world she doesn't fit into. What teenager isn't feeling that?

From the publisher's blurb..

Sarah, like every college-bound junior, deals with constant pressure from teachers, friends, and parents. Besides that, she’s a marching band geek and the only Jew in her class. So when she gets a chance to spend the summer on a kibbutz in Israel, Sarah jumps at the opportunity to escape her world. But living in Israel brings new complications, and when the idyllic world Sarah creates suddenly shatters, she finds herself longing for the home she thought she’d outgrown.

This lyrical novel beautifully captures the experience of leaving behind a life that’s too small, and the freedom of searching for a place with a perfect fit.