Mick Harte Was Here is a short novel for middle school students. It is primarily the story of a family's struggle to deal with grief. The helmet connection is that the grief is for a dead brother and son who died in a crash without a helmet.
Mick's sister Phoebe narrates the story. She sets the scene, introduces the crash, and then spends most of the book in memories of her brother, some hilarious, some serious. These are interspersed with scenes of the family--mother, father and Phoebe--attempting to deal with their loss.

Author Barbara Park has done such a fine job that this book will appeal to a much wider range of readers than just middle school. The memories of Mick are warm and readable. Even an adult will find it hard to put this book down. The helmet message is clear and has impact, but the book does not preach to the reader. - from Amzon