Hope Was Here 希望的所在 2001年纽伯瑞银奖小说 ISBN 9780142404249

　　Here's a book that's as warm and melty as a grilled Swiss onseven-grain bread, and just as wholesome and substantial. Eversince the boss promoted her from bus girl two and a half years agowhen she was 14, Hope has been a waitress--and a darn good one,too. She takes pride in making people happy with good food, as doesher aunt Addie, a diner cook extraordinaire. The two of them havebeen a pair ever since Hope's waitress mother abandoned her as ababy, and now they have come to rural Wisconsin to run the WelcomeStairways café for G.T. Stoop, who is dying of leukemia. But he'snot dead yet, as the kindly and greathearted restaurant ownerdemonstrates when he decides to run for mayor against the wickedand corrupt Eli Millstone.

　　As old-fashioned goodness lines up against the bad guys, thecampaign leads Hope in exciting new directions: a boyfriend who isa great grill man, a new sense of herself and her mission as awaitress, and--when Addie and G.T. finally realize that they aremeant for each other--the father she has always wanted. And all ofit backed up with stuffed pork tenderloin, butterscotch cream pie,and the rhythm of the short-order dance.

　　Joan Bauer, who won the Los Angeles Times Book Prizefor Rules of the Road, has served up a delicious novel in Hope WasHere, full of delectable characters, tasty wit, and deep-dishtruth. (Ages 12 and older) --Patty Campbell