The Boy in the Black Suit by Jason Reynolds

In a rough patch after his mom dies, 17-year-old Matt gets hired (and mentored) by his single, successful across-the-street neighbor, who owns the funeral home.

The job keeps him out of trouble, offers a little pocket money, and allows him to spectate on other people's grief in a reflection of his own. He also meets a girl whose grandmother has just passed away - a girl who challenges him in interesting, confusing ways.

Reynold's a shining star in the teen lit world, and for good reason. The book is sad without being maudlin, and it's realistic in the way modern kids deal with emotion. It's a fantastic urban book about a black neighborhood and the residents who occupy it.

Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles

When you live above the funeral home, death is just another day. But despite the family business and the fact she's been to 247 funerals, 10-year-old Comfort Snowberger is about to discover she's not as calloused as she believes.

This is a great, quaint book with excellent life lessons; Wiles has found a way to teach gently without preachiness. The characters are interesting and quirky but still seem real, and you wish you could become part of the caring, close-knit Snowberger family. Except for Peach. You don't want to be related to Peach!

Oh yes, cousin Peach. He's guaranteed to mess everything up. His voice and even his clothes make him the most annoying person in Comfort's whole world. He'll carry on like he's got no manners, and nobody ever bothers to remind him that "We Live to Serve."

I loved, loved, loved this book, and despite 250 pages I read it in a sitting. And yes, I cried.

Grounded

by Kate Klise

Daralynn is alive because she was grounded. She and her mother must now find a way to continue living after the tragedy that took the lives of her father, brother and sister. Daralynn starts out thinking that she will never be in trouble again. Surely, her mother will miss the others too much to ever punish her. Mother is now busy working two jobs to keep the family a float, and taking car of Grandma who has suddenly reverted to a childlike state. Daralynn also believes that she has found a grand new way to make money. To save the funeral home where her mother works, she believes that people should host living funerals. That way they can hear all the nice things people normally only say after someone dies. As the story rolls along, Daralynn finds herself caught up in what she believes is a mystery. Can she possibly solve it? Should she?