Counting by 7s

Lovely Cover of Counting by 7s

Counting by 7s

Author : Holly Goldberg Sloan
Date Published : August 2013
Genre : Young Adult

Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now.
 
Suddenly Willow’s world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.

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I know I should stop to read book something like this, dark, sad and lost. Anyway with dark themed, Counting by 7s is quite light and entertaining.

Here is Willow Chance, adopted to normal and happy couple with different colored skins. She is always been the eccentric one. Costuming herself in not ordinary wardrobe in ordinary day. Bringing suitcase to school and her affection to plants. Also, she is genius one.

One day, after answering her paper test in a perfect score, The Head Master called in and accuse her cheating. There, Willow met Dell, a school counsellor whose therapy methods are completely unprofessional; and from a couple of new friends-siblings Mai and Quang-ha - a Vietnamese born.

On a hot afternoon, after an ice cream treat from Dell, Willow come to her home just to found her set of parents were die in terrible accident. There, Mai to convince her mother-Pattie to take care of Willow temporarily.

Then Willow being normal version of herself, bury her emotions and lost deep in her unconscious mind. She try to act normal after losing her parents, but her inner circle know that Willow is not okay.

From unreliable bachelor; Dell, modest nail beautician; Pattie,smart teenager Mai, unfocused and angry brother Quang-ha, until random taxi driver who won lottery after met Willow,  they are struggle in their own way to support Willow until end meet. 

Willow strange behavior slowly draw the circles closer and need each other. 

Honestly, at first It was so hard to keep focus read this book because its slow plot. Then I don't know since when I started to read the book wholly and uninterrupted. May be when I know that unreliable Counselor try to improve his life because Willow, or may be when Quang-Ha start his hate-love relationship toward Willow.

Willow character itself is easy to be loved. The innocent, genius and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Willow is succeed to made me smiles several times.  

Tough Counting by 7s is heartwarming story (because made us believe again in humanity), I slightly doubted that happens in real life. Too much 'luck' in this story which not made sense. 
However, those matters surely could be ignored easily. It is only a story by the way...what's matters only what it has gave our heard and mind experience. 

Still a good book to read, especially when you love Wonder by R.J Palacio.