Rain is Not My Indian Name
By Cynthia Leitich Smith 

     The opening of this story is emotional and difficult. Fourteen-year-old Cassidy Rain Berghoff realizes that she and her best friend, Galen, have come to mean more to each other, but the budding romance is cut short when she learns that Galen was struck and killed by a car on his way home. Rain, who has already suffered the loss of her mother, is devastated, and avoids contact with everyone.

     Six months later, at the urging of her older brother, Fynn, she volunteers to photograph her Aunt Georgia's teen Indian Camp for the town newspaper, and later enrolls in it when funding for the camp becomes a contested issue at the city council level.

     Rain is a warm, witty narrator teens everywhere will relate to, but her Indian heritage is special, and will give teens great insight into that culture in modern times. Each chapter begins with an excerpt from her journal, which brings the reader up to speed with the lively multiple plot lines. Rain is Not My Indian Name is a rich, complex novel that will be treasured by teen readers.