Seeking Hakka Bakka

by Gow, Bebe Lord

• ISBN13: 9781475917352
• ISBN10: 147591735X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-05-03
• Publisher: Author Solutions

Summary

When eight-year-old Mandolin MacDu? 's beloved father tells her about "hakka bakka," a Hindi term meaning the place where you belong in life, it sounds great to her. With a mother she never knew, she sometimes doesn't know who she really is or where she belongs. When her father dies suddenly in an accident, Mandolin is left to live with her un-caring grandma, Hopscotch-and feeling more lost and out of place than ever. Her father was everything to her, and with him gone, she feels she has nothing. Hop-scotch certainly doesn't help the situation. A heartless, bitter woman, Hopscotch does nothing but pester young Mandolin. Then, Mandolin has an idea: What about her mother? What had ever become of the woman who gave birth to her? Perhaps by ?nding her Mandolin can discover her place in the world. Over the course of twenty-? ve years-and several continents-Mandolin seeks her unknown mother. In order to see where she is going, Mandolin must discover her heritage and connect with her mom. With the help of her father's spirit and a mother's love, she just might ?nd hakka bakka.

Excerpts

"No. I'm missing my dad. Hopscotch won't tell me where he is. I'm worried." Silence. Dead silence. She looked around the room, and everyone was looking at the ?oor sadly. Something was wrong, really, really wrong. Then her stomach clutched; she gasped ... Mandolin stared, ? rst at Tina and then her eyes moved around the room. When she saw Lillian poke Tina and put her ?nger to her lips, she knew it was over. She had tried not to admit the truth, and now it was out. She knew it! So did everyone. He was dead. Her dad was dead! Emptiness, total emptiness turned her body into mush. She stared at the ?oor; her eyes burned, and the room became dark and blurry. She forced back tears, looked desperately around and a voice inside called, No, no, no! Please, Dad. Please, Dad. Dad! Struggling for breath, Mandolin lowered her head, and tears began to fall. She had never lived a single minute without the love of her dad. What would happen to her without him? He had not always been there, and when he left, he always came back. Now he was gone, and she had nothing, absolutely nothing to look forward to. In a choked voice, she asked the ?oor. "Wh-what am I supposed to do now? What happened?"