Kat's Promise

A week before her thirteenth birthday, Kat loses her mother to cancer and becomes an orphan. You would think she would be relieved to have an aunt take her in. Especially a very rich aunt. You would think that, and you would be very wrong. Indeed, Kat's one wish is to see her aunt dead. Kat's mother worked for meager earnings. She taught Kat how to sew, how to cook, and how to be frugal. She taught her how to love, and how to forgive even the most unforgivable as Kat sat at her mother's bedside after another of her father's beatings. Her mother said he couldn't help it. It was the orphanage's fault. It damaged him. But her mother's death? That was her aunt's fault. Kat's mother worked in the school cafeteria until the cancer got so bad she couldn't bear it anymore. Because of Aunt Paulina, Kat's mother died in their tiny apartment, with only Kat to care for her, instead of in a hospital where drugs could have relieved her pain. Rich, stingy Aunt Paulina, the aunt who inherited all the family money after her mom was disowned, spent more money on the funeral than it would have cost to pay for her mother to have a life-saving operation. There's nowhere else for Kat to go. Forced to live with her mother's sister, Kat promises to make her pay. She begins to make good on that promise when Aunt Paulina says, "I'd like you to call me Mother." Kat makes her feelings clear and sets the tone of their relationship by responding, "I'd rather be thrown off a cliff, burning alive, than to call you my mama's name." If I leave you thinking that KAT'S PROMISE is just another book about a mother dying and the bitterness that follows, then I have done you, the reader, and Bonnie Shimko, the author, a grave disservice. This book is so much more. Kat discovers a history of family secrets that give her a deeper understanding of both the sisters, as well as her father. She bonds with Nettie, Aunt Paulina's harassed housekeeper. And she finds purpose in helping a neighbor regain his love for life. Ms. Shimko uses Beamer, Kat's new best friend, and Johnny, the neighbor's grandson, to add light to the story. And there are many other sweet moments that I'll let you discover. The writing will delight you, especially the brilliant descriptions. I absolutely could not put this book down once I started it, and I was sad to say good-bye to Kat, especially when things were going so well. I do not doubt that the characters will stay with me and I'll want to read this book again. For that reason, I give KAT'S PROMISE a gold star. Reviewed by: Cana Rensberger

Bonnie Shimko's KAT'S PROMISE will reach ages 12 and older, telling of a pre-teen whose mother ides, forcing her to live with a wealthy aunt whom Kat believes caused her mother's death. And she may have: the aunt is even crueler than thought, her house holds many mysteries, and Kat's life seems filled with only darkness and no future, until she discovers a new friend, some sympathetic ears, and some new hopes for positive changes in her life. A sensitive story teens will find compellingly different from the usual parental death account

What does a twelve year-old girl do when all her immediate family is gone? There is nothing left in the town where Kat has grown up now that her mother has died. After the funeral, Paulina, her mother's sister, comes to whisk her away to the town where both girls grew up. Kat takes an immediate disliking to her aunt, who insists that she be called Mother and that Kat will be her daughter now, and does everything she can think of to stay away from the house and her aunt as much as possible. The aunt's housekeeper befriends Kat, which is a blessing since she feels so out of place in her Aunt Paulina's presence. After telling her aunt that she will never call her "Mother," the war is on. Which will give in first? When Kat starts school she makes an immediate connection with the girl who sort of just tries to be inconspicuous, but in doing so, really stands out. They are almost inseparable through thick and thin. Kat has made a promise to herself, and will not break her promise. As we follow Kat through this tragic coming-of-age story, we find out all kinds of secrets about her mother, her aunt and the neighbors as well as the families involved. This was an overall well-written story. I liked how we see this young, almost adult, girl comes full circle within the life-altering moments. From the tragedy of losing her mother to the first love, we see Kat grow up pretty much as normal as possible. Armchair Interviews says: A well-written coming-of-age story that includes love and loss.