By the Shore

by Galaxy Craze

Book Overview

Published to great international acclaim, Galaxy Craze's best-selling debut, By the Shore, launched a young actress into literary fame. In clear and sparkling prose, her novel evokes a fragile, bittersweet world of youth on the cusp of adulthood and captures perfectly the hopes and hurts of childhood (The New York Times Book Review). Twelve-year-old May lives in a less than thriving oceanfront bed-and-breakfast run by her single mother. Her life is...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802136877
• ISBN13: 9780802136879
• Release Date: April 2000
• Publisher: Grove Press
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 7 and higher

Customer Reviews

Breathtaking first novel

By the Shore is seen through the eyes of twelve-year old May, who lives in a seaside hotel that's owned by her mother, Lucy. Although it's clear that Lucy loves her daughter, she is a woman who has refused to grow up and is too preoccupied with her own life to really notice May. May's main companions are her younger brother, Eden and her best friend, Jolene. Aside from Jolene, May is on the outside looking in when she's at school. She longs to be a part of the in-crowd, but her attempts to become one of them are unsuccessful. Enter Rufus and Patricia, a struggling writer and his stylish girlfriend. They're the newest guests at the family inn. Lucy is eager to please while May is wary of the couple. When Patricia goes back to London for a while to give Rufus space to write, Lucy and Rufus embark on what starts out as a flirtation and evoles into more. It's clear that they're in love, but outside forces threaten to put a stop to their relationship, namely Patricia and May's absentee father who comes into town for the Christmas holidays. May tries ever-so-hard to please her elite father, but he is too self-absorbed to care. Patricia, on the other hand has gained May's respect and admiration, and she is grateful for her company. I don't want to reveal too much about the last leg of this book, but the ending is honest and beautifully written. By the Shore is one of those books that you can really picture, full of vivid descriptions of places and feelings alike. Hopefully, Galaxy Craze won't stop with this excellent debut!

alluring and understated

Usually, I'm turned off by writing that calls any -any!- attention to itself, so I was surprised to find myself admiring Craze's understated and evocative prose, even as I was drawn into her plot. No car chases or Jackie-Collins-style love affairs, which accounts for the sour grapes reviews upthread, just the slow process by which a girl, essentially on her own, begins to understand the complications of hope and family and life.That summation sounds pat, but there is nothing pat about this book. A small masterpiece.

Will bring you back to your childhood !

This book was wonderful ! The reader gets to know and feel for each of the characters, especially the narrator, May. She is a twelve year old girl, learning the lessons in life that we all learn growing up...Lessons about love, life, trust and friendship...Every chapter filled me with emotion, smiles, giggles and sometimes a lump in the throat...It was very quick reading and I didnt want it to end ! I Definately recommend this book to anyone with a soft spot for children...Galaxy wrote this book with great detail and with wonderful insight on what is seen through the eyes of a twelve year old girl...

By the Shore is sublime

I have read the book and could not put it down. It was insightful, poetic and completely fleshed out those painful moments of growing up. I recommend this book highly. It is well written and achingly beautiful.

An excellent debut from a promising new writer

It's amusing to read some of the bitter reviews on this page. Perhaps I'm merely paranoid, but the bulk of them seem to be written by the same person, some evil dweeb with an unpublished novel gathering dust in her desk drawer. The fact is that Ms. Craze's novel is elegant and acute, and portrays an unusual childhood with vivid, often startling prose. Ignore the nastiness and read this book.