Beethoven in Paradise — Barbara O'Connor

Martin had always liked music -- liked to listen to it, liked to make up tunes in his head. More than anything, he wanted an instrument to play, but he knew that all he had to do was say the word "piano" to his father and all hell would break loose. His father thought music was for sissies, and was always mad at Martin for not being good at baseball. It seemed as if Martin would never have anything more than his little harmonica or the music in his head, and that he'd never be able to stick up for himself. But with a lot of help from his best friend, Wylene (about whom his father has plenty of mean-spirited things to say), his new friend, Sybil (who's unlike anyone Martin's ever met before), and of course Hazeline (who's actually his grandma but won't let him call her that), Martin surprises himself, and things turn out differently than he had imagined.

In this engaging novel filled with humor, pathos, and a colorful cast of offbeat characters, Barbara O'Connor shows that there's room for genius wherever there's a place for compassion -- even in Paradise.