A review by gxuosi
Keeper of the Night by Kimberly Willis Holt

5.0

this was my favorite book in the 4th grade. i got it from the elementary school library 5 times that year. the next year i left for the middle school and forgot this book ever existed. i've spent the last 19 years trying to remember the name of this book, trying to find it. it came in the mail, first edition hardback, 2 days ago. tonight i'm sobbing over the pages, trying to keep it dry. this book has meant everything to me for so long that i can hardly fathom i ever forgot its name. i forgot it the way isabel forgot her mom. i remembered the best parts first, the things that made me happy. for 19 years i could tell you all about where it took place, the cover art, about a girl mourning her mom and childhood, her depressed brother, the prose of it all. and now like isabel going through her mother's belongings, each page reminds me how much it hurts. how sad and painful the whole book has always been; and every page is worth remembering anyways. i can't express how much it means to have this book in my hands again.