Julia is a charming story of interest to adult and young readers alike. It opens with a turning point: Julia, a precocious twelve-year old, moves from Montreal to the Eastern Townships of Quebec when her parents become the caretakers of a property. The land is owned by a mysterious Dr. LaTendresse, whom no one has ever seen. The property is kept as a refuge where no hunting is allowed.
Julia is home-schooled which turns out to be to a delight, because she didn't like the public school she attended. As the first months pass, Julia becomes lonely until Gabriel, a boy her age who lives in the campground with his father, appears. The two become fast friends, and, as children will do, confided to each other their "secrets."
Gabriel, who lost his mother two years earlier, confides he has visions of her. Julia then confides she has a special tree in the forest that "speaks" to her.
Julia is an old-fashioned story in the best sense of the word. It is written in a clear style, and the main theme of the story is the preservation and nurturing of life. It takes the shape of a fawn that the children adopt, after its mother is hunted down and killed:
It was like having a baby. If Julia and Gabriel wanted to spend the day down at the meadow by the camp, they had to make Fawn's bottle first and put it in the backpack along with their sandwiches. "At least, we don't have to carry diapers." Julia said one morning as she put the long black nipple on the bottle.
Fawn loved going to the meadow. He ran from one end to the other, leaping gracefully over rocks and small hills. When he was tired, he returned and lay down beside Julia and Gabriel and watched the butterflies as they landed on the daisies and Queen Anne's lace. On their way back to the cabin each day, Julia and Gabriel stopped along the logging road to show Fawn where he could find the leaves he would eventually eat.
The author evokes the simplicity and wonder of living a life deep in the woods, where families enjoy the healthy life of skiing and snowshoes in the winter, play music by the woodstove, and live amidst forest wildlife. The climax, the killing of Fawn is reminiscent of the Pulitzer prize-winning classic, The Yearling, by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, which also revolves around backwoods life and the shooting of a pet fawn. In Julia, parents and other adults learn from the children's innate wisdom about the sacredness of life.
The delightful and original illustrations by West Coast artist Lisa Neulicht enhance Avinger's simple narrative. Neulicht's folk art renderings bring to life the characters of Julia and Gabriel as they feed Fawn and wander the forest. The artist has captured the contemporary feel of Julia in the details of dress such as sneakers on the feet, and blue jeans on everyone, but she has also captured the magical events in this memorable novel for all.
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