The Lake of Dreams by Kim Edwards

Penguin, 2011. ISBN: 978 0 670 92029 7
Recommended for secondary students. Following her mother's minor accident and incapacitation, Lucy, between jobs and beginning to question her relationship and what she is doing with her life, returns to her family home for a brief stay. Arriving at the place of her childhood, Lucy is unsettled by the memories of not only her father's death but also her first youthful romance with Keegan Fall, a local man with whom she is reunited. Suffering from jet lag, and unable to sleep, Lucy explores a part of the house her mother has kept locked. Practicing the skills she learnt from her father, she picks the lock on a window seat and discovers a blanket and some old brochures about women's health and the suffragette movement. Her temporary lack of direction and inquisitive nature lead her to investigate the history of these items and, in doing so, Lucy uncovers some well hidden family secrets.
Written with flowing, descriptive text, many paragraphs in this novel lent themselves to being read aloud. Edwards has produced a well-paced and engaging novel about family history, love and relationships. The modern day story is cleverly intertwined with the historic tale and the selfishness displayed by Lucy contrasts with the selflessness of other characters from the past. This could perhaps be used by secondary students as a paired text, contrasted with Mary Lawson's Crow Lake. Both revolve around the untimely deaths of parents and the ways in which such events can affect those left behind.
Jo Schenkel