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The Funeral Director's Son
by Coleen Murtagh Paratore

More than just a "coming of age" book!

Kip is a normal active "tween" trying to come to terms with the not so normal family business and the expectation that he as the only "son" will one day run it.

To complicate things Kip has a gift...no he doesn't "see dead people" - but he does have an inner voice that gives him an insight into issues that may limit a soul's ability to "sail". Kip learns that there is much more to the people around him when he listens to this voice.

Coleen Murtaugh Paratore must have boys because she "gets" Kip and his friends and the pressures they face in dealing with everyday life! Her writing style is clean and really fun!

From the Publisher: This family business is for life...
In the small town of Clover, when you die, you are put to rest by Campbell and Sons Funeral Home. Unfortunately twelve-year-old Kip Campbell happens to be the only "son" in that title. And that's a problem for him since the funeral home business is the last thing he wants to inherit, even if he has a "gift" for it. See, it just so happens that Kip can talk to the dead. Well, they talk to him, really. They tell him what they need in order to move on to the great beyond. Kip wants to move too. Straight out of Clover. He's about to give notice -- he's done helping the dead -- when he's offered a surprising deal: Find out the secret that is holding back old Billy Blye, and Kip will receive his weight in gold. That would be enough to take him far away from Clover, and Campbell and Sons Funeral Home.