Patterson,
Valerie. Operation Oleander.
Houghton Mifflin/Clarion 2013 187p ISBN 978-0-547-24437-2 ms/hs
Hardback
E-BN
Realistic fiction
This is a heart-wrenching novel that explores altruistic motives that have
unexpected outcomes, grief, friendship, and the difficulties of those who wait on the home front
when their relatives are on active duty in war zones. The motif of flowers, both day lilies planted stateside and the oleander that is at once
beautiful but poisonous, provides a visual as well as metaphorical look at the life of an army
family. Jess starts Operation
Oleander to help orphans of the Afghanistan War. She and her best friend have parents serving in Kabul, and they thought this would
be a beneficial effort that would bring them together even though they are
apart. When a bomb
detonates outside the orphanage, Jess’s father is seriously injured. Merriweather’s mother
dies. The emotions on the
home front include guilt and anger, directed at not just each other,
but also at
antiwar protesters who attend the funeral of Merriweather’s mother. Readers will get an
inside look at life on an army base, the fiercely protective community that
stands by its comrades, and the emotional roller coaster traveled by these
families. The writing style
flows along with wonderfully descriptive elements about nature, faith, and
family. This is a first
choice for letting civilian readers into the mindset of military families. It is strongly recommended for libraries that serve military families or
for those students wondering what life is like for children and relatives of
active-duty
military personnel serving in war zones.
Summary: Jess and her friends have started a charity to help orphans in Kabul. When two of
their parents are injured/killed due to a bomb planted at the orphanage, Jess
has to deal with backlash against their project, concern for her dad, and her best friend’s loss. Gr 7-12.
Afghanistan
War-Fiction, Military families-Fiction --Lois
McNicol
