In a Heartbeat

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Review:

About the Author

What Our Readers Are Saying

Add a comment for a chance to win!

Average customer rating based on 1 comment:

Courtesy of Mother Daughter Book Club com, February 23, 2010 (view all comments by Courtesy of Mother Daughter Book Club com)
Eagan is a figure skater. She’s athletic and talented and headstrong. Amelia’s world is limited by her failing heart. No longer even able to walk up and down the stairs of her home, she is homeschooled and spends a lot of time in her room drawing horses. In a Heartbeat by Loretta Ellsworth opens with Eagan’s story. We know immediately she dies after hitting her head on a board while making a jump in competition. Amelia is the girl who receives her heart.

The storyline goes back and forth between Eagan, who is caught between life and death, and Amelia who is learning to live and experience new sensations every day because of the strong heart beating in her chest. We learn about Eagan’s life through her memories of the times before her death. Amelia starts to suspect that some of her post-operation dreams and her new interests may be those of the donor.

In addition to the stories of the two girls, In a Hearbeat is also about Eagan’s and Amelia’s relationships with their mothers. Eagan feels her mother is too controlling and too invested in how she performs on the ice. She wants time to skate, but she also wants to pursue interests off the rink. Amelia is totally dependent on her mother, who has gone to great lengths to care for her while she waited for a new heart. Now she wonders how she can start to assert her own independence.

Even if you have not known someone who has donated or received an organ, you will be moved by this story of life for one that is not possible without loss for the other. The book never falls into a preachy tone advocating for organ donation, but instead takes a look at what it means from the human and emotional point of view. And it does a good job of showing the different perspectives that teens and parents may have about life and death.

While the focus is mostly on the girls, since it's told from their perspective, Ellsworth does a great job of showing the ripples of impact on both families and friends. There are many things for mother-daughter book clubs with girls 13 and up to talk about after reading In a Heartbeat. It should certainly open a dialogue between moms and daughters about organ donation and all it entails for both sides—feelings of hope, grief, guilt, and the possibility of a connection between donor and recipient. I highly recommend it.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

Product Details

ISBN:

9780802720689

Author:

Ellsworth, Loretta

Publisher:

Walker & Company

Subject:

Death

Subject:

Donation of organs, tissues, etc.

Subject:

Social Issues - Death & Dying

Subject:

Social Issues - Emotions & Feelings

Subject:

Situations / Death & Dying

Subject:

Social Issues/Emotions

Subject:

Feelings

Subject:

Children s Young Adult-Social Issue Fiction-Death and Dying

Subject:

Children s Young Adult-Social Issue Fiction

Copyright:

2010

Edition Description:

Hardcover

Publication Date:

20100231

Binding:

HARDCOVER

Grade Level:

Young adult

Language:

English

Pages:

224

Dimensions:

8.52x6.08x.85 in. .71 lbs.

Age Level:

from 12 up to 17