Bridge to Terabithia
Jess is surprised when Leslie, the new girl at his school, chooses him as her only friend. However, he is soon very happy to have met somebody who actually cares about his hobby of drawing and understands him. Together they “discover” the imaginary land of Terabithia and retreat there from all their problems. But how long can it last?
I found this one intriguing. It starts out as a slice-of-life story and a neat one at that. But about halfway through, with hardly any foreshadowing, the plot takes a turn you won’t expect (unless, like me, you had it ruined for you ahead of time). There’s definitely room for lots of discussion about the ending, which strikes me as sad for reasons the author didn’t quite intend.