This book was most likely written in the early to mid 1960s. I found it in my junior high school library around 1970.
It might have been written first person.The main character was girl about 15 and I recall three distinct scenes.In one she stands looking out her back door at dusk or night and sees what she describes as “buttermilk skies.” She might say it came from the Hoagy Carmichael song. In another scene she stares at herself in the mirror before going out and thinks “When last seen she was wearing ….” like newscasters do in describing a missing person. The last I recall is that she crossed herself, even though she was not Catholic.
Could this be the girl who walks in the woods struggling to understand life? I think there might be water nearby. She goes to France to visit relatives and is put on a strict diet. I’m looking for this book. Your info sounds familiar. Perhaps the family in France is Catholic.