Not Quite A Stranger by Colby Rodowsky17 year old Zachary Pearce has always lived his mother, but she has just died of cancer. While she was dying, his mother told him that after her death he should go to his father, so he does. His father is very surprised to meet him. He had thought that Zachary was adopted. His father has another family now; a wife, a daughter, and a son. Feeling that it is the right thing to do, they take Zachary in. The daughter, Tottie, is very resentful of Zachary. She feels angry at her father for having been with a woman other than her mother. And the attention heaped on Zachary does not help.
This story takes place in the author's hometown, Baltimore, and the details of the city make the story feel somewhat alien. The characters are realistic, although Tottie seems somewhat shallow. The chapters are alternately narrated by Tottie and Zachary, and sometimes the chapters overlap disconcertingly.
Happy reading.
