Oh. How it reminds me of being young. ( )

Summary and Evaluation: Raleigh is a quiet, self-contained Canadian girl who has just graduated from high school. On a trip to California to visit her father and a guy she met online, she ends up getting a ride with three of her classmates, who are close friends but know nothing about her. Incidentally, Raleigh believes that she has no soul, muses on being gifted and loosing her best friend, and carries an unopened break-up letter with her from the boy she visited. This book explores the randomness of the development of friendships and the peculiarity of the moment between high school and university. O’Malley’s artistic style in this, his first book, is still somewhat sketchy, but this matches well with Raleigh’s nostalgia and sometime inability to put her inner life aside in order to engage with others. O’Malley hints at several dark truths that could be inspiring Raleigh’s belief that she has no soul, but, ultimately, whether or not her belief is true is unimportant; the ruminations on friendship and the formation of a sense of self in late adolescence are the core of the book.
Booktalk Hook: I’m a huge fan of O’Malley’s work, starting with this title, and I think the idea of the strangeness of the liminal moment in which the narrative exists is a great entry into this title. I wouldn’t play up the “Raleigh has no soul” angle, because it would probably give the wrong impression as to the genre, tone, and themes of the book. ( )

oh my god...when did o'malley crawl into my brain and find out all my secrets?? i love this little book! maybe i am not the only one out there who feels like an alien...? ( )

Lost at Sea is about a girl called Raleigh who embarks upon a cross country road trip with some friends she doesn't really know. She also believes that a cat stole her soul, she has strange dreams, and she gets up at funny times of the night and sees cats.

Malley has a great eye for social politics and situations and he captures the insecurity of adolescence very well. This is the kind of book that you read all the way through feeling like an invisible intruder in the personal environment of people somewhere between friends and strangers. I enjoyed it a lot. ( )