What I Came to Tell You by Tommy Hays (author) (US edition)

Grover’s mum has died. Can he overcome his loss in this tale of family, friends and forests? It’s bad enough saying goodbye to your mum. But Grover’s whole family seems to be falling apart. His father buries himself in work to hide from the pain, leaving Grover looking out for his younger sister. His only distraction is making intricate weavings out of bamboo from the nearby forest. Too bad his dad thinks that’s a total waste of time. As tensions mount between father and son, new neighbours arrive from the North Carolina hills and plop right into Grover’s life. Soon, the families grow and knit together, just like one of Grover’s weavings. Until a terrible disaster threatens to tear them apart… The most charming, touching story: one to read if you’ve ever known what it feels like to be sad and then happy again.