The Very Ordered Existence of Merilee Marvelous.

Crowley, Suzanne (author).

Marilee is different. She craves order, repeats words, and disdains hugs. She doesn’t like the unexpected in her life. One day young Biswick and his poet father come to town. Small and like “an alien,” the inqusitive, needy Biswick brings a disruptive urgency that changes Marilee. Crowley makes an impressive debut with a story that captures the human condition as seen through the eyes of the good (and not so good) folks of Jumbo, Texas. Her strength lies in the way she kneads scenes and characters, giving them a fullness that moves beyond mere reality. Crowley has created a finely honed secondary cast, but her stars, Marilee and Biswick, are problematic in that neither feels like an authentic representation of a child with a “syndrome” (Biswick has fetal alcohol syndrome; Marilee, Asperger’s); both are bright, articulate, and clever. Marilee says she wants to be alone, but she easily takes to Biswick, and Biswick, though called a “retard,” merely seems eccentric. This is, however, still a beautifully crafted story that will give children much to talk about.