Every soul a star

At Moon Shadow, an isolated campground, thousands of people have gathered to watch a rare total eclipse of the sun. Three teenagers are there, and each of them is about to see their life shift.

Ally lives at the campground and loves labyrinths, star-gazing and hunting for comets. Moon Shadow is part of who she is, and she will not picture her life anywhere else.

Bree is popular and beautiful, and everybody says she is a sure future homecoming queen. Her looks work like armor, and the book asks what she is trying to hide behind it. Jack is overweight and awkward, and he is used to spending long stretches alone. When an opportunity comes his way, he lands in situations he never imagined and makes friends in places he did not expect.

The story is told in three distinct voices, one for each teenager. It is a young adult novel about strangers who meet, friendships that seem unlikely, and the question of where a person belongs in the universe. The eclipse gives the book its setting and its sense of occasion, and the pace follows the gathering crowd toward the moment the sun goes dark.