A little book of compassion and love, ‘The Apple Tart of Hope’ by Sarah Moore Fitzgerald, can really pull one’s heartstrings. Oscar Dunleavy, a boy who loved making apple tarts for those in grief, the older brother of Stevie and the best friend of Meg, goes missing and people presumed that he was dead.
Filled with confusion and grief, Meg and Stevie wait with hope for Oscar’s return. A few years ago, Oscar and Meg were best friends and talked right through their bedroom windows, but as their friendship grew stronger and was about to blossom into love, Meg had to move to New Zealand for six months. Meanwhile as she was off to New Zealand, Paloma Killealy moves in to Meg’s room and befriends Oscar and with her annoyingly beautiful looks tries to destroy Oscar by pointing out through her nutty belief system, ‘The Ratio’, that he was the cause of his mum’s death and Stevie’s inabilities.
She feigns friendship with Oscar and secretly spreads rumours and mocks him. Later as Meg heard of Oscar’s demise, she returns. In the end she finds out the truth. She along with Stevie find that with strong love, friendship and the power of never giving up, one can one always keep hope alive in their hearts.
As a secondary schooler, it was a heart-pulling book. It gave me hope that good things always follow when difficulties strike, be it losing a loved one or a bad grade in school, something good will always follow.
— The reader is a pupil based in Sharjah.
