Palace Beautiful

I still really like reading juvenile/young adult fiction. I read them to screen books I think my kids would like, but they're also cleaner, quicker reads that I find enjoyable. Palace Beautiful was a precious book! Darling story line of a girl and her sister who move to Utah and become friends with their neighbor -- gloomy, creative, self-named "Bella" whose family life is less than ideal. Together they discover an old diary in their attic, written by a child who lived in their home years ago. As they read through the journal they explore similarities between their lives and the life of the author, and many sweet lessons are shared about death, life, and family.

My favorite things were how the artistic main character never used plain names for colors, but rather "Far-Far-Away Blue" and "Wide-Awake Red". Also the friend Bella was very imaginitive and creative, and had I been 9 years old I would have totally spent a week trying to be as melodramatic as she. (I was able to restrain myself at my current mature age.) There was no direct reference to the LDS church through the modern characters, but the journal contained several references to "the Bishop" and going to church, giving blessings, etc. Which is OK in my book!

The only things that would, in my mind, limit the audience for this book were the several references to where babies come from (never saying it out loud, only mentioning an understanding) because the mom is expecting. We haven't quite had that talk yet with my kids and I'm sure they'd wonder about those parts. I can just see it now - "What is she talking about mom?" Bella also has a fascination with spirits/ghosts and a few parts were kinda spooky, but nothing too bad.

I felt that internal swelling of joy/sadness as I finished reading and know I'm going to miss these characters.  Enchanting book by Sarah DeFord Williams.