{"id":2568,"date":"2017-11-13T15:20:00","date_gmt":"2017-11-13T20:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.silvercentury.org\/2017\/11\/god-is-in-the-pancakes\/"},"modified":"2017-11-13T15:20:00","modified_gmt":"2017-11-13T20:20:00","slug":"god-is-in-the-pancakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/78.142.243.82\/~silvercentury\/2017\/11\/god-is-in-the-pancakes\/","title":{"rendered":"God Is in the Pancakes"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Robin Epstein<\/span> – Dial, 2010<\/em> <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This sensitive book addresses several characters\u2019 search for meaning under painful circumstances. Fifteen-year-old Grace, her mom and her older sister have struggled since Grace\u2019s dad deserted them for another woman. Both sisters stumble through challenging transitions within the high school dating scene. Grace also seeks meaning on a larger scale, trying to assess whether she really believes in God and how to make complicated, irrevocable decisions about what\u2019s right and wrong.<\/p>\n

Grace has been working as a candy striper at a local retirement home and has developed a close friendship with 84-year-old Frank Sands, who has Lou Gehrig\u2019s disease. Later she also becomes close to his wife, Isabelle. Frank and Isabelle are portrayed with complexity and respect, as real people with foibles, disappointments and overwhelming problems. But Grace is right in there, dealing with the nitty-gritty with open eyes and an open mind.
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\nIn an electrifying development, Frank asks Grace to help him die, because his illness will gradually rob him of all power over his body until he can\u2019t even breathe or swallow. He doesn\u2019t want to live for years as a mind entombed in a paralyzed body. At first, Grace says no, but eventually\u2014when she sees how much he\u2019s suffering and how rapidly he is becoming paralyzed. He repeats his request and she feeds him poison. He dies that night. Grace plunges into a tumult of confusion and guilt. Days later, she learns that Isabelle had already disconnected Frank\u2019s respirator shortly before. Isabelle is horrified to learn that Frank asked Grace as well as herself to help him. The reader never knows for sure whether Frank died because of Isabelle\u2019s action or Grace\u2019s or both, but the two of them acted on the same instinct to spare him suffering.
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\nThis is hardly the kind of novel that says old age is carefree and fun, but it does affirm that even someone confined to a hospital bed cannot be dismissed as less than a full human being with nothing left to give. Frank\u2019s steady presence gives Grace just as much as she gives him. She particularly appreciates his gift for finding the humor even in grim situations. After his death, Grace watches the beauty and power of a sunrise and thinks, \u201cWherever Mr. Sands is, he remains with me, part of the dawn.\u201d
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\nBeautifully written, this book will challenge teens to think through the complex topic of euthanasia, and other moral dilemmas, in a new light.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fifteen-year-old Grace, her mom and her older sister have struggled since Grace\u2019s dad deserted them for another woman.<\/p>\n

Read more God Is in the Pancakes<\/span> ›<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

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