The Noah Confessions

Does the name Barbara Hall sound familiar? It does to me because she has written and produced a number of my favorite TV shows - Judging Amy, Chicago Hope, and Joan of Arcadia. I knew she had also written some books, but I hadn't read any. THE NOAH CONFESSIONS caught my eye at the bookstore, and then I saw her name and snatched it up pronto! Lynnie Russo doesn't remember much about her mom, but she's about to learn way more than she ever thought there was to know. Her mom died in what everyone refers to as a "bad car wreck." Having a dead mom puts Lynnie in a special category at her private L.A. prep school. Everyone there is known for something, and this is Lynnie's "something." A sixteenth birthday in Lynnie's neighborhood means a new car. Lynnie's expectations are not necessarily new, maybe a modest used VW, but definitely a car. Surprise! Her dad hands her a small box. Car keys? Nope, just a cheap looking charm bracelet with birds on it. You've got to be kidding. Where's the car? Dad says there isn't one. There is something else though. Lynnie's dad also gives her a manuscript. It is a letter written by her mother back when she was fifteen, almost sixteen. It is supposed to explain her mother's life. All Lynnie knows as she begins to read the lengthy letter to some mysterious Noah person; it is not a car. Barbara Hall takes readers on a journey with Lynnie as she discovers a huge secret about her mother's life. Imagine thinking you know the people who have surrounded you for your entire life only to discover a whole other world full of secrets. THE NOAH CONFESSIONS will suck you in before the end of the first chapter. Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

The Noah Confessions by Barbara Hall is a new book for the young adult reader and within the captivating mystery are a lot of good examples of what can happen to teens who make poor choices or choose the wrong crowd. Young Lynnie expects a car for her 16th birthday and is quite disappointed with her father's gift, which looks old and shabby. She rebels in ways to hurt her father. But the gift ultimately reveals her much about her dead mother and the story of her youth. The book is a good one for teens.

Barbara Hall's THE NOAH CONFESSIONS tells of a teen who receives an unusual gift on her sixteenth birthday: not the posh new car she's expecting like her peers, but an invitation to regain lost perspective by exploring her mother's past. Her journey will bring her to her mother's childhood home, where she uncovers family secrets and a renewed appreciation for life.

Lynnie Russo has always been an obedient daughter to her widowed father and a model student at the exclusive Los Angles private school she attends. Like all the other girls at school, Lynnie fully expects to receive a car --- hopefully a new one --- for her 16th birthday. But instead of an automobile, her father gives her an old, chipped charm bracelet with birds on it. Receiving a used charm bracelet --- and an ugly one at that --- makes her angry, embarrassed and disappointed. She realizes that her father won't give her a car because her mother was killed by a drunk driver while on the road. Knowing the reason doesn't make her hurt any less; she thinks her father is being unreasonable and unfair. To get back at him, she ditches school and spends the day learning how to surf with one of her free-spirit classmates. And that's just the beginning of Lynn's rebellious behavior. While visiting her mother's gravesite, she befriends an unkempt "public school" boy who wears old jeans, a faded fatigue jacket and beaten-up, low-brand sneakers. After her father learns about what Lynnie has done, rather than punishing her, he presents her with a manuscript. "The Noah Confessions" is a combination memoir, love letter and confession written by Lynnie's mother when she was her age. After Lynnie starts reading the handwritten manuscript, she discovers the kind of person her mother really was and learns the significance of the charm bracelet. She also begins to understand why her father clings to her mother's memory. THE NOAH CONFESSIONS is an inspirational tale about how circumstances, choices and sacrifices can shape lives and how events that occurred long ago can reverberate into the future. --- Reviewed by Donna Volkenannt