Dancing on the Edge
by Han Nolan
Published by Harcourt Brace
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Reviewed by Amy L. Loos
Award-winning author Han Nolan again captures our full attention in Dancing on the Edge.
Not many people can claim to have been born after their mother was killed in a car accident, and not many people can claim that their father was a child novelist prodigy at age 13--but Miracle McCloy can.
But when Miracle's father, Dane "melts away," as Grandmother Gigi puts it, and the neighbors begin making trouble for the small family due to Gigi's involvement in the occult, Gigi and Miracle leave town and move in with Gigi's ex husband, Granddaddy Opal. For the first time in Miracle's life, thanks to Granddaddy Opal, she gets a chance to be a child and pursue her own interest, dancing.
Yet all of the problems with the adults in her life and her inability to face reality cause Miracle to follow in Gigi's footsteps in the occult, leading her to practice on her classmates. But when a student accuses Miracle of being fake, she sets herself on fire and ends up as a patient in a mental hospital. Inevitably Miracle learns through her psychiatrist, Dr. DeAngelis, the coping methods to change her life and stop living in the past.
Dancing on the Edge is a powerful novel filled with a bevy of unique characters and difficult topics that challenge the reader to stick with this book. While I enjoyed Miracle, Granddaddy Opal and Gigi, I also felt that much of the true intent of the story was lost on the quirkiness of the characters. There never seemed to be a person of reason in Miracle's life until Dr DeAngelis and by then, Miracle has spent most of her life, and a better part of this book, in the shadow of her parent's past and her eccentric family members lifestyles.
All that set aside, Dancing on the Edge is worth the read. You can't beat Ms. Nolan's writing ability in facing issues such as mental illness, suicide and the occult.
Armchair Interviews says: Lots of life's challenges all in one book.
Author's Web site: http://www.HanNolan.com