100 Butterflies

"100 Butterflies" begins shortly after 13-year-old Ristyn Anne Ward's father dies of cancer. Separated from her younger sister (Mona), Ristyn is sent to her grandmother's in the Thousand Islands for the summer. (For some reason, Ristyn's mother thought it appropriate for everyone to grieve apart. I never understood this, but I hardly thought about it while I was reading, only when her mother or sister were mentioned.) Here Ristyn becomes friends with a few of the local teens--Paul "Buddy" DePasquale (who is a total creep), DeWit King (aka Mr. King or "Dimwit" by Buddy), the Lemont twins (Eric and Alan), and Heather Wax (Ristyn's homely neighbor). Although Ristyn is having a wonderful time so far attending boat-burning parties and learning how to water-ski with very little adult supervision, everything brightens when her popular older cousin (Shawn Lee Johns) shows up unannounced. She's had a crush on her eccentric cousin for several years, and during his stay, she learns the actual meaning of "kissing cousins". Besides being a distraction for everyone on the island, Shawn Lee also helps Ristyn collect the 100 butterflies she's been assigned to catch by her freshman biology teacher for that fall--thus the title of this book. (By the way, I thought Shawn Lee's method of collecting them was very creative and humane.)I read this book years ago when I was a kid and had a very difficult time later on trying to find a copy to purchase. (Luckily, I did find one. :) It's really too bad this book is out of print, because it's a fantastic coming-of-age story. It's carefree and funny, and makes you remember exactly what summer was like when you were young. If you like such books, then you'll probably enjoy "100 Butterflies". It's remained one of my favorite books for over 10 years, and I periodically return to it to peruse a chapter or two. Highly recommended for readers age 10+ (about the age I was when I read it).

I loved this book.I first read it as a child for a school project.I read it 25 times after that.I couldn't put it down!! I read it over and over again.It helped me alot as a child.