Good book---such excellent writing, and the main character's voice was so compelling. Yes, another narrative from a precocious 11-year-old. But this story kind of blew me out of the water. Clara winter (she insists on a lowercase pronunciation of her last name) lives with her single mother and makes friends with Georg (NOT "George" she reminds people. He's an immigrant and his name is Georg), an elderly man who is a tinsmith living in a trailer home. She befriends him ostensibly to interview him for a school project, but mostly to have a friend. Georg teaches her to find beauty in the world, and this quiet and amazing book shows how Clara seeks out what she needs in the world when she can't get it from the people who owe it to her.

Clara is an isolated, rather awkward eleven year old living in the foothills of the Adirondacks who loves stories, reading and words. She befriends an old immigrant metal worker who lives in a trailer park and forms an instant connection with him, and her overactive imagination weaves intricate stories about his life when he refuses to open up about his childhood. Like the old man, Clara's mother Tamar is also reluctant to reveal her past. Clara only discovered that her twin sister died at birth when a neighbor accidentally spilled the secret, and Clara has been (amusingly) badgering her mother ever since with questions about what her name would have been and how she died. The novel's setting in wooded, rural upstate New York is practically a second character in this book, lovingly described with mentions of local streets and stores; unfortunately, not being familiar with this part of the country, those references didn't provide much emotional pull for me personally. I found the writing style to be lovely and the narration through a child's point of view engaging, but the plot dragged. I don't think I would have been able to finish the novel if it weren't my next book club's pick. And just to nitpick, I really disliked the title and wish something had been chosen to highlight Clara's relationship with the old man rather than her obsession with her deceased sister.

Realistic fiction. 243 pages. This is the story of 11 year old Clara Winter, a very curious and determined little girl. Clara interviews and becomes friends with Georg Kominsky, a retired immigrant metalworker, for a school biography project. She is obsessed with the lives of early American pioneers and also likes to invent the truth if she doesn't get satisfactory answers to her questions. It was a confusing read at times, trying to distinguish the truth from her lies, and I needed to backtrack quite often. I found myself wondering if Clara's persistence was leading to a diagnosis on the Autism spectrum.

Still on my list of favorites - my 3rd reading now. Wonderful characters! I'm especially fond of Clara - a precocious eleven year old girl who befriends an elderly neighbor, writes 'fake' book reports and makes up stories to answer the questions she has about people.
I have met this talented Minnesota author numerous times at readings and workshops; most recently at the Minnesota (Twin Cities) Book Festival. Now I'm on to her latest book which takes up Clara and her mother's story twenty years later. (Never Coming Back)

i read this book in two sittings. it's very easy to read. and i'm not sure i really liked it. i mean, it was well written, the story was cute. characters pretty likable, i guess.

the main character, i know, i know, was supposed to be this 11 year old girl who admittedly "didn't talk like any other 11 year old." she's wise beyond her years, and all that crap. but i didn't really believe it. no 11 year old would, or could, for that matter, speak like she did. and it made the book a bit unbelievable.

i think the story was a good one...girl coming of age, learning about her family, coming to terms with death and isolation, etc...but the way that the main character spoke made the whole thing...just...wrong.

that's all i have to say about it.

I felt the author was able to convey the thoughts and feelings of an 11 year old, trying to find answers about her birth and life from a Mother who dismisses her. Her creative, yet child’s, mind fills in the blanks with scenarios she wants to believe about her life and the people she cares about. Her relationship with the old man was a way for her to be heard…and he helped her to find answers. This story was heartfelt! I saw other reviews that said they disliked that words and their definitions were in the story, but Clara’s whole focus was words and stories to get her through a life that was less than great.

Excellent portrayal of the thought process of a young mind. Just wasn't my taste. Give it a read if more literary fare is your cup of tea.

Amazing....So well written. Read it in two days. Story of a young girl who invents "fake book reports" by making up stories about "possibilities" trying to uncover truths about her past that her family doesn't share. She starts relationship with an old man and he teaches her how to make old trashed things into beauty. In the end ,he dies trying to save her from a fire

This book started off super slow. I almost DNF-ed it after 75 pages. However, I am always a sucker for a (strictly grandfatherly) relationship between a child and an old man. It gets me every single time. The family dynamics at play in this book were heartbreaking, and how the relationship ended with Georg was equally so. I'm glad I continued with it and saw it through.

I wish I hadn't waited so long to read this - I got this at a used book store and stuck it on my shelf for years. Pulled it down the other day and read it in a day and a half. This story brought tears to my eyes - it was just a tender, beautiful book about a young, eccentric, smart girl with a fantastic imagination and a yearning for her dead twin and her relationship with an old quiet, kind, reclusive immigrant. A tragic story that pulls at the heart. It is going back on my shelf where all the loved books remain as a testament to time well spent. Kudos.

PLEASE do NOT read the provided description of this novel: it reveals too many details.

This is not a book to speed-read: proceed paragraph by paragraph. Enter the mind of a precocious book-minded eleven year old girl who has grown up outside a little town with her mother.

Her sensitivity to other people develops slowly and curiously as the story progresses. With a scrupulous director and careful casting, this would make a fabulous movie.I hope there will be a sequel.

First there was Anne with an "e", now there is Clara winter with a lowercase "w". Both are 11-yo girls with big imaginations and a love for words and books.

This book is going on my favorites shelf, but, unfortunately, only virtually since the paperback itself is in pretty bad condition.