Feeling for Bones

Rainy-afternoon readers could do far worse than to curl up with Pierce's treat of a first novel. Pierce, who teaches English at Miami University in Ohio, introduces readers to Olivia, the 16-year-old budding artist who narrates this lush story. Olivia not only takes readers deep into her struggles with anorexia but introduces a rich cast of characters, like her funny, needy little sister, whose birth name is Claire, but who everyone calls Callapher, short for "Calla Flower." With the help of beautiful Mollie, a free-spirited, devout Christian girl who quickly befriends the family, and Margaret, an old, kind, busy-body great-aunt who is always ready with a helping hand, Olivia and Callapher do their best to settle into their new home, nicknamed "The Shoe Box" because of its tiny size. They've just moved to a small town where Mom and Dad try to make a new life after a scandal forces Dad out of his position as pastor of their old church in Ohio. This story is about family, faith, love, starting over and a whole host of life's curve balls, beautifully told by a girl who has endless heart but a tough mountain to climb when it comes to loving herself as is. (May)