Ellie’s mom is dead and Ellie is mad. She is mad that she never looked for the mother that left a few months after Ellie was born. She is mad that her dad never wanted to talk about her mom. And, she’s mad that her mom never really reached out to her.

But, she has a shoebox of mixed tapes, cd’s and odd items that her mom had apparently sent to her a year before. So, she and her band friends try to find out who this woman was that had been Ellie’s mom. She discovers so much along the way, most importantly that she is surrounded by loving friends and a dad that is her champion. Oh, and there are so many 1980’s songs mixed in that the reader will be compelled to turn up the stereo and sing along to some Cindy Lauper, et al.

This story is a fast -paced read with likeable characters who behave just like one would expect as they work together to put together who Ellie’s mom really was. Fortunately, there is believable closure for all as Ellie figures out who really matters to her. Recommended