India Opal’s mama left when she was only three, and her father, “the preacher,” is absorbed in his own loss and in the work of his new ministry at the Open-Arms Baptist Church of Naomi. Once again, Creech takes difficult familial and emotional situations and crafts them into a powerful, economical story.A 10-year old girl learns to adjust to a strange town, makes some fascinating friends, and fills the empty space in her heart thanks to a big old stray dog in this lyrical, moving, and enchanting book by a fresh new voice. The last drawing of the apple is one tiny seed: all that's left after it's been eaten. Annie doesn't say this aloud, but it's there in the text for careful readers. The baby emerging into life is the beginning of a continuum that ends in death. It also demonstrates, neatly and economically, the truth about life: that it passes, that every day is different, that you must notice things before they disappear, and so forth. The progress of the apple and what becomes of it is a metaphorical parallel for what is happening to Annie's grand-father. They must each choose an apple and draw this piece of fruit every day for 100 days. I don't think I could find my own words here without echoing hers, so here they are, summing up the central theme of the book beautifully.Īnnie's art teacher sets her class a project. The young adult novelist, Adèle Geras, captures the heart of heartbeat best with her review from The Guardian from 2004. She knows that she loves to run and she loves to run by herself.

Max joins the track team at school and pressures Annie to join to, as does the coach, but she knows that she doesn't want to be part of a herd racing for a finish line. Max and Annie run together, barefoot and free through the woods at the edge of town. Max is determined and often angry, thinking that Annie is 'spoiled' for having two parents and a grandfather in her life. Outside of her home, Annie struggles to maintain a friendship with Max, whom she has known all her life. She also worries about her ailing grandfather, looking up to him and taking care of him at the same time. Annie worries for her mother and the baby growing inside her - she calls it an alien baby and dreams that when it is finally born they will find a rabbit, mouse or small horse instead of a human. Her mother is pregnant and her grandfather, who lives with her family, is slowly losing his memory. Creech tells the story of Annie's transitional twelfth year of life over the course of fifty-two poems.

Heartbeat by sharon creech