What My Sister Remembered [Paperback]

Marilyn Sachs (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1994

When a car accident killed Molly and Beth's parents, Molly was adopted by her aunt and uncle, while Beth became the only daughter of a rich family. Then Beth visits Molly for the first time in eight years. Molly doesn't understand why Beth seems to hate her so much. Beth remembers more of their past than Molly--and she's going to tell the truth, no matter whom it hurts.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Even more impressive than Sachs's prodigious output is her ability to keep material fresh, relevant and convincing. Readers are certain to empathize with her newest protagonist, Molly, an 11-year-old orphan who resists confronting truths about the past. Molly looks forward to seeing her older sister Beth again after their eight-year separation, but when Beth arrives for a visit with her wealthy adoptive mother, she seems to carry a chip on her shoulder and is appallingly rude to Aunt Karen, Molly's guardian. The reasons for Beth's deep-rooted anger do not become clear until the novel's final pages, when family secrets begin to unravel during a dinner party. Rather than focusing on the guilt of particular characters, the author concentrates on relating their various responses to unfortunate circumstances. As always, her writing is sensitive and moving. Resolutions do not come easily; but by the end of the story readers will sense that the expression of painful memories leads to understanding and forgiveness. Ages 10-14.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6 --Warm, loving, and working class, Molly's adoptive family suits her. Beth, her older sister, lives across the continent with a distant, wealthy family, and the sisters haven't met in eight years, since their parents' death. This brief novel takes place at their reunion, in Molly's New York apartment, in the span of a little more than 24 hours, and is told in easy contemporary dialogue. In the process, Molly, her mother, and father are revealed with clarity, although other characters are less complete. The visit becomes a screen upon which the sisters' pasts are cast. Beth is alternately angry and loving, while Molly experiences inexplicable feelings of fear. At an impromptu party planned by Molly's eager-to-please mother (who is also the girls' biological aunt), emotions and memory collide. Beth accuses her aunt of abandoning her, and Molly at last recollects the accident in which her parents died. Finally, readers see that healing begins at last, and they may be exhausted from witnessing the entire spectrum of human emotion in the final three chapters. In an admirable effort, Sachs has assayed a psychological suspense story. However, because there is negligible foreshadowing of Molly's recollection, and no clues at all to her mother's revelations, the effort is weak, and the result is melodrama. Although the book is flawed, young readers may enjoy the fairy-tale feeling of the contrast in the sisters' circumstances and the roller-coaster ride to the resolution. --Carolyn Noah, Central Mass. Regional Lib . System, Worcester, MA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (June 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140369449
• ISBN-13: 978-0140369441
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,459,177 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this book!!!!, October 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: What My Sister Remembered (Paperback)

As a fan of Marilyn Sachs ever since she published the rare "Amy Moves In", I couldn't help but buy it when I found it in a used bookstore.

The story starts out simple: 11-year-old Molly gets news that her sister Beth is visiting, and although there is a lengthy description of why Molly lives with her aunt and uncle (who she calls Mom and Dad), we find out that Molly and Beth were in a car accident and their parents were killed.

Then, things get complicated. Beth isn't the happy-go-lucky, nice 13-year-old that Molly expects. Although Molly predicts Beth has a figure, that's it for what Molly thinks. Beth is actually hostile, mean, and just about the rudest person Molly has ever met. And for the first time in her life, Molly wants to kill her sister, or at least give her a good fight.

One day, Beth comes and starts babbling to Molly exactly what happened in the car eight years before. Molly, who's fed up with Beth, tells Beth to shut up, but Beth is either delirious with the accident scene or she's just not going to listen. Nevertheless, Beth keeps talking, and finally Molly wrestles Beth to the floor, and the girls wrestle, slap, and bite each other in the fury. Unfortunately for Molly, Beth has to leave then, but Molly knows she wants to slap Beth again before she leaves. But Beth babbles on at dinner, nevertheless, and Molly never gets around to fighting Beth again... although she did find out What Her Sister Remembered.

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I've read in a long time!, October 27, 2010

By 

user of amazon - See all my reviews

This review is from: What My Sister Remembered (Paperback)

This book was wonderful! Molly finally sees her long-lost sister who turns out to be a snotty 13 year-old brat.
Please Read!What My Sister Remembered