Broken Soup by Jenny Valentine

While standing in a queue a boy hands Rowan a photograph negative saying she had dropped it. Fifteen year old Rowan denies knowledge of it, but when she has it developed with her friend Bee, it turns out to be a photograph of her dead older brother. This mystery deepens as the story progresses and there are many surprises, none better than the ending.

This is a teenage novel of family relations following the death of a much loved brother and how this affects other relationships with friends. It is a novel about grief. Rowan and her young 6 year old sister Stroma are the stars of this book as they pull their lives together following the departure of their father and the morbid depression of their mother. At times the novel has you laughing and crying at the same time.

Jenny Valentine had a hit with her first book Finding Violet Park and her ability to write honest realism with a hopeful outlook, should ensure that this book is a hit too.

Suitable for Secondary school students.

Reviewed by Bob

Published by HarperCollins 2008