The Year of My Miraculous Reappearance [Paperback]

Thirteen-year-old Cynnie has a lot on her plate. In trying to carve out a place for herself in the world, she has to contend with an alcoholic mother who hosts a revolving door of boyfriends (none of whom last very long, which Cynnie is fine with). Cynnie also finds herself being more of a mother to her younger brother Bill, who has Down's syndrome. Add to this her reputation at school for being difficult, her tomboyish behavior that confuses her relationship with the neighborhood boys and a stubborn streak, and it's easy to understand how she becomes overwhelmed.

Try as she might not to become like her mother, Cynnie begins to rely more and more on alcohol to dull her pain after her grandparents take Bill to live with them, believing Cynnie's mom can't handle the responsibility anymore. It takes a drunk driving accident and court-ordered AA meetings before Cynnie begins to understand the trouble she's in and takes the first steps to turn her life around.

In creating Cynnie, Catherine Ryan Hyde has given readers a very real character whose pride continually gets her into trouble until she learns to let it go. The book presents a potent reminder of how easy it is to succumb to the allure of alcohol and, worse, how easy it is to become that which we hate the most.

In a world where the varied dangers faced by teens are growing exponentially on a day-to-day basis, THE YEAR OF MY MIRACULOUS REAPPEARANCE serves as a warning that the old dangers are still very much around.

--- Reviewed by Brian Farrey

THE YEAR OF MY MIRACULOUS REAPPEARANCE by Catherine Ryan Hyde (the author of the well-known Pay It Forward) truly illustrates the life of a young teen and her struggle with an alcoholic parent and the ripple-effect of alcoholism.

Cynnie is used to taking care of herself. Not only herself, but also her little brother, Bill, and let's face it, she takes care of her mother, too. Normal life for Cynnie involves cleaning up after her alcoholic mother, making sure one of her many cigarettes doesn't set their house on fire, and tending to her little brother who has Downs Syndrome. Life isn't easy, but it works for Cynnie. Cynnie's only escape is the tree house one of her mother's many passing boyfriends helped her build.

Until one day when her grandparents show up and announce that Bill will be living with them. Bill is Cynnie's only reason for living. When he leaves, she discovers the power of alcohol to erase her pain. She becomes her mother - stumbling through the day under the influence and waking the next day to do it all over again.

Even through her drunken haze, Cynnie knows her only hope lies in getting Bill back into her life. She convinces her friend Snake, a victim of his own father's abuse, to help her rescue Bill so they can all escape to a better life. Unfortunately, their plan collapses when Cynnnie wrecks the car. Everyone recovers from their injuries, but Bill ends up back with their grandparents, and Cynnie finds herself on probation and back home with her drunken mother.

Part of Cynnie's court-ordered punishment includes mandatory attendance at AA meetings. The meetings are at first intimidating, but as Cynnie finally discovers through the help of her sponsor, they offer her a way to push her life in a positive direction. Her goal to eventually reunite with her brother gives Cynnie the determination to overcome her fears.

Hyde takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of emotions as Cynnie battles her mother, her grandparents, and her own personal demons. As in real life, nothing is easy and relapses make life seem hopeless at times. Cynnie's story is straightforward and inspirational.

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

Everyone I've talked to about The Year of My Miraculous Reappearance seems to agree that Becoming Chloe sounds (and is, for those who have read both) better. I respectfully disagree. I loved Becoming Chloe, but this book spoke to me so much more personally.

When Cynnie grandparents take her three-year-old brother, Bill, away, leaving Cynnie to "make sure her mother is okay", and Cynnie is miserable. To soothe the pain, she begins drinking. Even though she vowed never to become her alcoholic mother, Cynnie finds herself spiraling down a slippery slope and doesn't even realize it. When she's the cause of an accident that could've killed not only her, but her kid brother and one of her only friends, Cynnie is court-ordered to take the Alcoholics Anonymous program. And there, she begins facing and understanding all the damage she's caused.

Oh, where to begin, where to begin on saying how all-out fantastic this book was. The plot is dark, taking dips into abuse and vices, but the author doesn't try to make it easier to digest. Some parts had me going, "No! Don't do that, Cynnie!" But that's the thing--it got a reaction (and a big one, at that) out of me. I was incredibly invested in the story. Cynnie is a lost, broken, hurt, confused, cynical character who is just trying to do the best she can with her scant circumstances. She falls into the alcoholic abyss. She commits some godawful mistakes. Some of the choices she makes are downright stupid. It takes all the strength she has, and more, to climb out of the hole she dug for herself. And she does it! She does it for herself. Most importantly, she does it for her brother, who needs her.

Cynnie's strength is in all honesty amazing. She captivated me, and I don't know why, but I felt like I knew her and understood her (as much as I could, anyway) because of Catherine Ryan Hyde's stellar first-person portrayal of her.

This book just, I don't know, grabbed me and registered with me. It was very different from Becoming Chloe. Both were thought-provoking, but this one dug deeper in me. The writing here was still sharp as ever, but very introspective, because of the few people Cynnie allows herself to trust. The characters, even the secondary ones, were super well-developed and had not three, but four dimensions each. And best of all, the ending gave me hope for Cynnie. It wasn't too pessimistic or too optimistic--it was just right.

I wouldn't change a thing in this novel, and couldn't recommend it more. I can't say enough great things about Catherine Ryan Hyde, either. She's seriously an author to watch out for. If Becoming Chloe is in my list of top ten favorite books of all times, this is in the top five. I seriously challenge anyone to read it and see if it had the same effect on them.

Grade: 10/10