The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson

Here is a book that is going to be on a lot of potential Newbery lists this fall.  It already has 4 starred reviews.  Candice has moved in to what used to be her grandmother's home for the summer. There she meets the neighbor boy, Brandon, and together they start to investigate the circumstances surrounding an event many years ago that had brought disgrace on her grandmother.  Candice finds a letter among her grandmother's things that tells of a hidden treasure and contains clues to how it could be recovered. As Brandon and Candice follow the clues, they learn about the town's past which is steeped in prejudice and injustice.

In this book Johnson unfolds two stories from two different generations. One deals with the people in the town during the 1950's and their struggles with racial prejudice and segregation. Candice and Brandon have to deal with other kinds of prejudice and bullying while they search for clues in the present. There was a tacit comparison of the racial prejudice of the 50's with the GBLT prejudice today and I haven't quite decided if I think it was a little too heavy handed. The beauty of the writing is not quite par with some other Newbery winners, but the plotting is pretty amazing and is equal to Holes or When Your Reach Me. This is a book that grown-ups will like but it would take a pretty mature child reader to really enjoy it. Still, the Newbery committee is made of adults, and this book does deal with current hot topics.  If it won the Newbery, I wouldn't be too disappointed. (331 p. 2018)