• Age: 9 to 12
• Grade: 4 to 7

A summer night. A Saturday. For Claire, this summer feels fantastic because she’ll be zooming off to college in the fall. For her younger sister, Natalie, it’s an okay time with her friends: summer jobs, then hanging out. Fun mostly, but nothing special.

A summer night. An accident. Life changes in a heartbeat.

In Would You, Marthe Jocelyn tells a haunting story of tragedy and loss, of how one day can shape the next and at the same time emphasize the magnitude of life.

Marthe Jocelyn is the award-winning author and illustrator of over thirty-five books for babies, kids and teens. Her illustrated books have been shortlisted for both the Governor General’s Literary Award and the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award. In 2009 she was the recipient of the prestigious Vicky Metcalf Award for her body of work. One Red Button and One Piece of String are the result of her lifelong obsession with scraps, and her delight in surprising the reader with unexpected details. Originally from Toronto, Marthe settled in Stratford, Ontario, after a thirtyyear stretch in New York. For more information, visit www.marthejocelyn.com.

Marthe Jocelyn's profile page

"It is difficult to overstate the brilliance of Would You...."
— The Globe and Mail
"...[an] exquisitely honed novel...."
— Starred Review, Publishers Weekly
"The narrative's strength is in its candor.... A realistic and very credible account of how one family's life is inexplicably and unexpectedly shattered."
— Kirkus Review

Would You

“Would you rather have your father sing at the supermarket or your mother fart in the principal’s office? Would you rather have a piece of rice permanently attached to your lip or a fly always buzzing around your head?” These are some of the questions that Natalie and her friends idly contemplate as they spend lazy summer nights hanging out at the Ding-Dong and engaging in the occasional game of poolhopping. It’s a quiet, ordinary summer, except that Natalie is trying to avoid thinking about the fact that her older sister Claire will be going away to university in the fall and nothing will be the same without her. However, change comes sooner than anyone anticipates when Natalie and her parents find themselves forced to face the unimaginable pain of losing Claire in a completely different way.

Marthe Jocelyn’s latest novel provides a brief snapshot of one family’s suffering in the face of a terrible tragedy. In its brevity it manages to depict, with startling clarity, the depth of their sorrow and the random nature of the accident itself. One of the book’s greatest strengths is the relationships that Jocelyn portrays. She also captures fragments of feeling, from Claire’s father’s unreasoning (though not unreasonable) anger towards the driver that hit Claire to Natalie’s sudden and intense fear that something might happen before she ever seizes the chance to kiss her best friend Zack. These bits and pieces weave themselves into the narrative but do not necessarily form complete storylines with clear resolutions. Rather, they come together to form a realistic portrait of grief, loss and letting go. This is a tender and deeply moving account that cannot fail to touch the hearts of readers.

Would You

For Claire, this summer feels great because she’ll be at college in the fall. For her younger sister, Natalie, it’s an okay time with her pals: summer jobs, then hanging out. Fun mostly, but nothing special. When Claire is struck by a car and left comatose, the relaxing summer becomes tragic in a heartbeat.