The Callahan Cousins: Keeping Cool
by Elizabeth Doyle Carey
Published by Little, Brown and Company
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Reviewed by Andrea Sisco
The Callahan Cousins: Keeping Cool is part of a series, each of which features one of four strong, talented and nice female cousins.
The cousins: Neeve, Kate, Hillary and Phoebe, are still at their kind and wise grandmother Gee's estate on Gull Island. They all live together in the Dorm (guesthouse) which they've remodeled for their summer stay.
The Callahan Cousins: Keeping Cool is told from Kate's perspective. Kate enjoys cooking, decorating and knitting. The cousins consider her interests to be those that only 'old ladies' enjoy and have begun to tease her daily.
Shy Kate decides to become "cool." Her changes challenge the
cousins' relationship and cause Kate to question if she is being true to herself.
Raising funds and obtaining donations for the island medical clinic
places Kate in unfamiliar and terrifying territory and brings her to a
greater understanding of herself and the mean-spirited Sloan (who
makes another appearance in this book).
The Callahan Cousins: Keeping Cool is another delightful romp with the cousins. They are friends, but they are family first and trusting and caring for each other is the most important thing to them.
Armchair Interviews says: We love the strong moral compass of these
positive books, especially in an era where young adult books lean
toward the dark, gritty and dangerous. This is a breath of fresh air
and a series anyone would want and encourage their children to read.