R is for Rubio

I've tried during this journey to stay away from Oprah. I have been trying to find my own books and not allow the Queen of all media to pick for me. This time, I just couldn't escape her. The title of the book intrigued me, so I grabbed it to check it out a bit closer. I immediately saw the Oprah Book Club logo on it and considered putting it back, but I still read the summary. I was even more intrigued. I continued to look through the "R" section, but kept coming back to this book. In the end, I carried my "R" choice to the front counter and checked out Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio.

This is a wonderful story of a young orphaned girl growing up in the 50's in the hills of Kentucky. Icy got her name because she was as cold as Icy Creek when she was born. Just weeks after Icy is born, her mother dies, seemingly to the family from eating sour fruit. Icy believes it is the sourness she was nourished on in the womb that has caused all her troubles. Icy grows up in the home of her loving grandparents from whom she tries to hide her growing problems. Around the age of 10, Icy starts suffering from tics and croaks. She is labeled a frog-child by her peers and is shunned by the entire community. As an outcast, Icy finds friendship in an unlikely source; the older, obese owner of the town's feed store. Miss Emily becomes friend, teacher and mentor to the young and confused Icy.

One of the few rough places I found in the book was in Icy's stay at a mental hospital. While I understood why during the 50's a child with tics and croaks who sometimes curses with abandon would be sent to a hospital, there never was much resolution there. No diagnosis was found and she really didn't change at all after her stay. The chapters where Icy was in the hospital were a horrifying glimpse into what a state-run hospital for mentally ill children might have been like in the 50's. From the aide who tormented the children to the mix of physically ill with mentally ill children, it was a sad look back. Icy left the hospital just as she entered it, with her anger, her tics and her separation from the community around her.

Under the tutelage of Miss Emily, Icy studies and prepares for a life outside of the rural community from which and in which she has been isolated. She tries her hand at young love, only to watch it slip away when the tics overcome her while she is in the embrace of her new boyfriend. Icy does find her gift in song. Singing relaxes Icy so the tics stay at bay and through music she is able to bridge some of the gap between herself and the town people.

In the book's epilogue, Icy tells us that she finally found the cause of the tics, twitches and croaking when she is diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome. While the diagnosis does little to erase the pain she endured as a child, it gives Icy a new view of her future.

There were some rough patches in Icy Sparks, but for the most part, it was a wonderfully written book. Rubio's writing is reminiscent of some of the finest Southern writers ever. Icy is a wonderful narrator who makes us laugh and cry, rejoice and cringe. Icy Sparks is a different kind of coming of age story. If you ever felt that you didn't belong, you'll identify with Icy and Miss Emily. I recommend Icy Sparks for anyone who loves Southern writers. I recommend Icy Sparks for anyone who has felt totally left out at some time in their life. I recommend Icy Sparks if you want to laugh and cry and be thoroughly entertained.