A Crooked Kind of Perfect tells the story of Zoe Elias, an almost-eleven-year old girl who desperately wants to play the piano. At Carnegie Hall. But really, she'd settle for actually playing the piano at first. Zoe spends most of her after-school time at home with her dad, a guy with anxiety issues that pretty much keep him from being around other people, except for Hugh, the UPS guy. Mr. Elias spends his time furthering his education with at-home study courses. Mrs. Elias is the controller for the state of Michigan, and spends most of her time (including weekends) at work.
When Zoe's dad brings home a boompa-chucka Perfectone D60 electric organ! with "two (2!) keyboards, ergonomically stacked to put high and low octaves in easy reach!" and "luxuriously realistic walnut veneer!", Zoe isn't exactly thrilled. And when Wheeler Diggs follows Zoe home one day and befriends her father, Zoe really doesn't know what to think. But she kinda likes playing music -- and she kinda likes having Wheeler around, too. And when she's invited to play at the annual Perform-O-Rama, Zoe has to make a choice: prodigy or practice?
Why I love this book:
1. It rings true. Not just because I was a young girl who desperately wanted to play the piano, and then did, although I'm sure that didn't hurt. Zoe's need for acceptance and friendship is really what drives the book, and that rings true.
2. It's funny. And it has heart. And for you writer-types out there, who hear editors rave about wanting to see books with heart (without naming titles, usually), this is the exact book they mean. This and Cynthia Lord's RULES and Kate Di Camillo's Tales of Desperaux, to name a few.
3. I have an inner 10-year old girl's crush on Wheeler Diggs, who never takes off his denim jacket even if it's really hot out, or really cold. In fact, my inner 10-year old girl's crush on Wheeler is pretty much as strong as my inner 16-year old girl's crush on Tom Tanner from Tips on Having a Gay (ex)Boyfriend (by Carrie Jones), which is saying something. Because Tom Tanner hits levels on the crush-o-meter that approach "Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy levels." I'm just saying.
4. The quality of the writing is superior. Really, truly excellent (or as Wheeler might say "top drawer"). So excellent that it has forced me to have positive feelings about the song "Forever in Blue Jeans," and to get misty eyed when Neil comes on the radio. Now that's some powerful writing.
So -- even though I read this in a prior incarnation as a manuscript (and before final revisions, I should add, so there was stuff here (and stuff not here) that was new to me), and even though Linda is a friend, I'd have to say that I'd be recommending this book even if those things were not true. Because this book is that good. A Crooked Kind of Perfect is a perfect kind of book.