Eight months ago, Lucy, a classically trained pianist wunderkind, walked off stage at a major competition in Prague, furious that her grandfather had withheld news of her grandmother's death back home in San Francisco. Her grandfather, a rigid force in their family, announces she has made her choice: She's done with piano (meaning he's done supporting her career). Lucy thinks she's happy about it until she meets her ten-year-old brother Gus's new piano teacher. Gus, also a major talent, is being taught by Will Deva, a former prodigy whose approach is much more relaxed than anything Lucy or Gus is familiar with. Will asks Lucy if she wants to play again and Lucy finally admits the answer is yes. But can she really return to music on her own terms? Then Lucy's wonderful relationship with Gus-they can understand each other like no one else-frays when she begins to develop a crush on Will, who doesn't necessarily discourage her attraction despite being married. What Lucy can't see is that Will is hoping her return will boost his own career. Sara Zarr's novel about an extraordinarily talented young woman offers insight into the life of a child prodigy. In Lucy's case, she is a mix of maturity beyond her years and self-centered teen, and caught between the desire to define herself, meet other's expectations, and wanting to just be a typical teen-a dimension of life explored through her relationship with friends Reyna and Carson. (Age 13 and older)

Lucy Beck-Moreau once had a promising future as a concert pianist. The right people knew her name, her performances were booked months in advance, and her future seemed certain./DIV

That was all before she turned fourteen.

Now, at sixteen, it's over. A death, and a betrayal, led her to walk away. That leaves her talented ten-year-old brother, Gus, to shoulder the full weight of the Beck-Moreau family expectations. Then Gus gets a new piano teacher who is young, kind, and interested in helping Lucy rekindle her love of piano -- on her own terms. But when you're used to performing for sold-out audiences and world-famous critics, can you ever learn to play just for yourself?

National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr takes readers inside one girl's struggle to reclaim her love of music and herself. To find joy again, even when things don't go according to plan. Because life isn't a performance, and everyone deserves the chance to make a few mistakes along the way.