LETTING GO OF LISA
Lurlene McDaniel
Laurel-Leaf Books
Fiction
ISBN: 9780440238683
192 pages

Seventeen-year-old Nathan Malone has led a sheltered life. He is home-schooled by his mother and doesn't spend a lot of time with kids his own age except for his best friend Skeet. Nathan is suddenly thrust into a strange new world when he enrolls in one of Atlanta's largest high schools for his senior year. He has a lot of hard lessons to learn about love and loss during his first year in high school.

LETTING GO OF LISA, a heartwarming novel by Lurlene McDaniel, revolves around Nathan's relationship with Lisa Lindstrom. Lisa isn't the type of girl who Nathan's mother had hoped he'd bring home. She rides a motorcycle, wears leather pants and acts like she doesn't care what others think of her.

Every boy at school wants to know Lisa, but she won't give them the time of day.  Nathan manages to crack her tough outer shell by being himself. He shares his feelings with her even if she isn't willing to open up to him.

Nathan sees right through Lisa's tough act when she brings her friend Jodie to his garage to try out for his country band. Jodie is a great singer, even though she's very shy, and Nathan hires her to be the lead singer of The Heartbreakers. He knows that Lisa cared enough about her friend to want to help her; Jodie never would have tried out on her own. Soon after Jodie joins the band, Lisa has an excuse to spend more time with Nathan and listen to his music. As Lisa and Nathan get closer, a romance also blossoms between Jodie and Skeet.

When Lisa starts disappearing from school in the middle of English class, Nathan wonders where she goes. He soon discovers that she has a secret, and he has a choice to make. Will he be able to let go of her?

LETTING GO OF LISA is a touching coming-of-age novel with no stereotypical characters; Nathan and Lisa are both complex individuals with real feelings. Lurlene McDaniel does a great job of making the book sentimental without being sappy and keeps the dialogue believable. It's an enjoyable read for people of all ages.

   --- Reviewed by Renee Kirchner (renee.kirchner@usa.net)

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