Review: Sandpiper by Ellen Wittlinger

Title: Sandpiper

By: Ellen Wittlinger

Publisher: Simon Pulse (February 12th, 2010)

My Copy: Review Copy provided by Publisher

BookWhisperer:

About the Book:

When The Walker, a mysterious boy who walks constantly, intervenes in an argument between Sandpiper and a boy she used to see, their lives become entwined in ways that change them both.

This book was very difficult to find a book description to preview here with this review. The one above I felt just does not do this book justice, so here is a little more description about this story. Sandpiper is 15 years old, and found her way into a dangerous lifestyle. In attempts to replace the hole her father seems to be leaving in her life; she has become very promiscuous with many young men in her life. The charged emotions that accompanied sexual acts allowed her to feel, at least for the moment, that she was loved and adored.  While she is still a virgin; she is far from innocent. After Piper’s last break up things have begun to unravel leaving a desire for change in its wake. She soon finds that the past is a hard thing to overcome. When her last boyfriend decides that she must pay for breaking his heart; she not only finds herself in danger, but also her family and more importantly her thirteen year old sister. In the midst of the story Sandpiper finds herself drawn to one particular young boy that is known as “The Walker”; her attraction to this young boy as her caught off guard when it is nothing like what she has experienced in the past. Aidan, aka The Walker, is a loner that is only known for his constant walking of their small town. When Sandpiper drags him into an altercation with her ex boyfriend it sparks a friendship that they never knew would lead them both into a world of trouble. Aidan has his own secrets that he has struggled to leave hidden, but his friendship with Sandpiper gains him some unwanted attention. When Aidan finds that he is no longer the loner with no name he knows that it is time to go, but it seems that he has more trouble leaving than was expected. Although, what Aidan fears most just might be what he needed to save him. Wittlinger adds depth to her story by following each chapter with a poem written by Piper. This gives the readers more insight into the characters feelings and thoughts; kind of like foot notes to each section of the story. Sandpiper is a very realistic story that gives readers a shocking glimpse of today’s societies kids. This story portrays just how easy it is for a young girl to find herself in a position such as this one. The promiscuity of this story is a little hard to handle in parts, but it seems necessary in establishing the true nature of this story.