What Happened to Lani Garver (Hardcover)

by Carol Plum-Ucci (Author) "How can some people's lives look so good when they're so foul underneath?..." (more)
Key Phrases: fish frat, basement lyrics, convenient recollection, Lani Garver, Tony Clementi, Vince Clementi (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
The folks on Hackett Island, near Philadelphia, are not too friendly to newcomers. Anyone the slightest bit different is eyed with suspicion, as Claire found out when she missed a year of junior high due to leukemia. Now she works hard at fitting in, following treacherous but popular Macy's lead, hiding her passion for the guitar, and never talking about her fear that her illness will return. Or her nightmares. Or her eating disorder. The boys of Hackett Island's "in" crowd are members of the "fish frat"--hunky sons of the local fishermen--and their horseplay even among themselves is brutal and edge-of-danger.

And then Lani Garver shows up at school, a tall, thin, strangely androgynous person. "No. Not a girl. Sorry," he says pleasantly when Macy questions him about his gender with vicious curiosity. But Claire, much to Macy's disgust, is drawn to Lani, and his wisdom and kindness begins to heal her. He takes her to Philadelphia to meet his artistic friends, talks sense to her about her eating disorder and her blind devotion to Macy, finds her a therapist. Who is this Lani Garver? He resists "boxes" like "gay." Even his age is a mystery to Claire. Strangest of all, could he be a "floating angel," as his friends at the hospital seem to believe? Meanwhile, the fish frat are closing in for the kill, and when their harassment turns lethal, Lani shows a terrible side of himself Claire has never seen.

Carol Plum-Ucci raises tantalizing questions around a fascinating character in this gut-clenching story that transcends the clichés of the gay-bashing novel. (Ages 14 and older) --Patty Campbell

From Publishers Weekly
Claire McKenzie, narrator of this taut, provocative novel, wonders not only "what happened to Lani Garver" but about who and what Lani is. When Lani shows up on Hackett Island, neither Claire nor her cheerleader friends can tell if Lani is male or female (Asked if he's a girl, he says, "Oh! No. Not a girl. Sorry"). Claire has been hiding much of her identity, too: she conceals her electric guitar and the bloody lyrics she writes, and she doesn't tell her friends or her alcoholic mother that she suspects her leukemia has returned. When Lani finds her fainting, he pries her secrets out of her, then takes her to a hospital where she can get tested without parental consent. They bond, a bit quickly, as he helps her face her "hidden garbage," (among other things, her recent ill health is due to an eating disorder). When an orderly tells her about androgynous "floating angels," spiritual beings that help people in need, the discussion plants a question in Claire's mind, and as odd events continue, she skates close to asking if Lani might be one of those angels. Plum-Ucci's talent is such that readers will share rather than dismiss Claire's curiosity. The climactic scene, in which the boys kidnap Lani and Claire and take them to the docks, crackles with suspense. Even if not always convincing, the plotting exerts a sure grip, commanding the imagination well past the final page. Ages 14-up.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 328 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152168133
• ISBN-13: 978-0152168131
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #931,042 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Richie's Picks: WHAT HAPPENED TO LANI GARVER, October 7, 2002

By	Richie Partington "http://richiespicks.com" (Sebastopol, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

... Claire, who tells us the story of WHAT HAPPENED TO LANI GARVER. It is a horror story about a person--well, let's say, a being--who arrives with his mother on Hackett Island, where Claire is a native. Sporting an unusual hairstyle and graced with delicate features, it is unclear whether LANI (pronounced "Lonny") is a boy or a girl. ...

Claire is a native. Her boyfriend is a member of the fish frat--"that's the sons of Hackett's commercial fishermen, who are sometimes lifeguards and usually very hunky." Her friends think she should be happy, set in her position among the high school elite, healthy after missing most of junior high due to treatments for acute juvenile leukemia.

But Claire, who still has her share of problems, sees the neatly folded boxes of her life crumble when she becomes friends with Lani. And what happens as a result is a tense tale that won't let you go.

"We don't talk about the drowning around the island. We don't really talk about what led up to it, either. If I hear Lani's name, it's usually in mentions of him having gone to our high school for only two days, and isn't that weird, as if the greater mysteries never existed. Maybe that's the way people need to remember it."

While reading WHAT HAPPENED TO LANI GARVER, my stomach all knotted up, I kept asking myself, "Could a whole group of kids really be this horrible?" ...

Richie ...

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Do angels really walk among us?, June 28, 2005

By	Jenni "jenni35" (Louisville, KY USA) - See all my reviews

First of all, this is a GREAT book that is hard to put down once you start reading it. You'll wonder, do angels really exist? Lani (pronounced Lonnie) seems feminine and masculine at the same time. With his girlish features, he becomes the outcast at the high school....and it doesn't help that he's new to town either. Luckily, he finds a friend in Claire, who is in remission from leukemia and whose friends are too creeped out about her courageous battle with cancer to talk about it with her.

Lani, as Claire finds out, is a good listener and also gives good advice. But when the other people in town accuse Lani of being gay and propositioning one of the town drunks, things go a little haywire. Should Claire stick with the friends she's known for years or this he-she, Lani, who has only been around a few days? Is she seeing things conveniently or is what she sees the truth?

This book, once I opened it, was a hard one to put down and it kept me going right up until the ending. If you're looking for a book that will hold your attention and keep you on the edge of your seat, this book is definitely for you.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Thought-Provoking Good Book, August 27, 2003

By	SARAH (Stanford, KY USA) - See all my reviews

Cancer, homosexuality, family problems, reality, eating disorders, stress, angels, a little bit of everything is covered in this book. It deals with the harsh truth of the life of a teenage girl, but has a twist when her little reality "bubble" comes toppling down. Claire thinks that her life is good, even though she does have some problems, but they're not anything she wants to talk about with her fun-loving friends. She ends up learning numerous valuable lessons, that you too are sure to pick up on.

Everything had started to go right for Claire, she was a cheerleader, was back in school, and seemed to be pretty healthy. But her whole world turned upside down when Lani Garver comes to her small island. Nobody can seem to figure out exactly what Lani is. Claire can't seem to resist her interest in this kid, and ends up telling him a lot of things that she has chosen not to share with anyone. Lani listens and helps her. But can she befriend such a "controversial" person? Calire ends up in a really big pickle to say the least.

Does she befriend Lani? If she does talk to this kid, what is everybody going to think, and more importantly do? All these questions are answered and more. Claire has many more problems than she likes to tell people. They end up being told eventually, but of course there are consequences.

People like to hide who they really are inside because they're afraid of rejection, and then criticize others who know more so who they are. But who are these people to sit and judge anybody else when they themselves are so confused about who they are? Lani Garver has his opinions about life and everything, and knows who he is. But he gets criticized because of his beliefs and looks. After hearing what happens to Lani and how Claire puts on such a fake identity it really makes you stop and think about yourself. Nobody should be judged based on looks, or who we hang out with, or anything such as this. We should love one another because of our differences, they're what make us special.

Everybody can get a different lesson out of this book to help us improve our everyday lives. It gives you a different out look on your own life, and how you live it. This book is best for high school students who like deep reading on thought-provoking controversial issues. It's just a book that you have to read for yourself. There's no doubt that you'll want to tell the whold world about it!