The Colours

 Juliet Bates is the author of The Colours, a novel set in Ireland. The story is told from two perspectives. One is from Ellen who is 12 when her father dies and she is shipped off to a Catholic orphanage for girls. She had hoped to stay with her older brother, Henry, but the local priest insists she go to the orphanage to learn how to behave. The other perspective is from a boy named Jack. Ellen is Jack's single mother. In Ireland, at this time, being different, being a single mother  is frowned on. Ellen is a person who is not typical. She doesn't go to church. She sees colors in a different way. Each person in her life is represented by a color. Jack, for instance, is blue. Her coworker at the house where she cares for Mrs. Tibbs is the color of stewed prunes. Color is important to Jack as he starts out painting landscapes during the war, moves on to architectural drawings, then water colors and eventually ends up teaching drawing at the University. The story of Jack and Ellen is told slowly and carefully in this very enjoyable novel.