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A Novel
by Ethan Joella
Book Reviewed by:A heartbreaking, life-affirming new novel by Ethan Joella—author of the Read with Jenna Bonus Pick A Little Hope—about a young woman searching for answers about her brother's last days.
June 1975. Maggie Bishop has just graduated high school, the future hers to embrace—but she's still reeling from the death of her older brother, Chip. A devastating diagnosis the summer before prompted Chip to leave home for a few months, never revealing where he went. Maggie's search for clues leads her to The Red Maple Inn, a mountaintop resort in the Poconos.
At the Red Maple, Maggie is welcomed into a tight-knit community. As she unravels secrets about her brother's final days, she begins to connect with the people he loved, and whose lives he touched. Through the warmth of strangers, Maggie begins to heal and is able to help others cope with loss.
Set in a nostalgic resort town over two transformative summers, this dual-narrative novel explores sibling relationships, coming of age, and the quiet power of human connection. Perfect for fans of emotional storytelling and small-town summer books, The Top of the World is a timeless story about memory, grief, second chances, and hope.
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (6/25/2026)
...y'all about those starting tomorrow. I'll start https://www.bookbrowse.com/bb_briefs/detail/index.cfm/ezine_preview_number/25146/the-top-of-the-world The Top of the World by Ethan Joella tomorrow for review, followed by https://www.bookbrowse.com/bb_briefs/detail/index.cfm/ezine_preview_number/26049/inspiration-from-9000-miles-away In...
-kim.kovacs
Ethan Joella's novel The Top of the World centers on Chip Bishop, an eighteen-year-old with terminal leukemia. After his high school graduation in 1974, he leaves home without telling his family where he's going, eager to have new experiences while he still can. He lands a job at the Red Maple Inn, a couples-only resort in the Poconos, where he spends the summer connecting with the facility's owner and with other staff members. As his health deteriorates, he's forced to return home, but not before creating a found family and having some of those experiences he wished for. On his deathbed, he refuses to tell his family where he's been or why he left. In addition to beautiful writing and poignant thoughts about death, the book is populated with likeable, sympathetic characters that leave an indelible impression long after one finishes the book. Joella's writing grasps how people might react in the face of tragedy and conveys those emotions with genuine compassion.
Liz Moore, author of The God of the Woods
I loved following the moving story of Maggie and Chip, two characters I won't be forgetting anytime soon. The Top of the World is a pleasure to read from start to finish. Megha Majumdar, author of A Guardian and a Thief and A Burning
An immensely affecting novel about living with zeal and approaching life's end on one's own terms, The Top of the World gifted me both courage and comfort.
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