A Summer to Die

by Lois Lowry, Jenni Oliver (Illustrator)

Overview

Thirteen-year-old Meg and her sister Molly couldn't be more different. Molly is beautiful and popular, and Meg is brainy and introverted. Accepting these differences has always been difficult for Meg. When Molly falls ill, however, Meg must learn not only to accept Molly and her life, but to accept death.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544668416
Publisher:	Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication date:	05/10/2016
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	94,129
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	12 Years

About the Author

Lois Lowry is the author of more than thirty books for young adults, including the popular Anastasia Krupnik series. She has received countless honors, among them the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award, the California Young Reader’s Medal, and the Mark Twain Award. She received Newbery Medals for two of her novels, NUMBER THE STARS and THE GIVER. Her first novel, A SUMMER TO DIE, was awarded the International Reading Association’s Children’s Book Award. Ms. Lowry now divides her time between Cambridge and an 1840s farmhouse in Maine. To learn more about Lois Lowry, see her website at www.loislowry.com.

Editorial Reviews

"Not simply another story on a subject currently in vogue, this book is memorable as a well-crafted reaffirmation of universal values." Horn Book

"A warm picture emerges of a family bound together by caring and closeness. . . . Meg's sorrow as well as her joy comes pouring out in this perceptive tale."—Booklist, Starred review

From the Publisher

Sometimes reading or rereading a well told story from years ago is so much better than reading a new story. This book is indeed such a joy. Meg and her sister, Molly, move from their comfortable home in town, where each has her own bedroom, to a small cottage in the country where they must share a bedroom so their dad can finish the book he’s writing. Neither girl is happy with the move at first, but then Molly finds a boyfriend at her school and Meg meets an old man, Will Banks, who helps her find her way. The family dynamic changes when Molly gets seriously ill and has to spend time in a hospital. When she comes back, she is not the same and Meg does not know why. In the meantime, Meg begins to take photography more seriously, encouraged by Will Banks, who gives her his German camera from World War II. Will owns the three houses on his farm: the cabin he lives in; the cottage he rents to Meg’s family; and the large house he grew up in. Unfortunately, his only living relative wants to sell the farm for a profit, saying Will can live his life out there. When Will sells the large house to a nice young couple, Maria and Ben, his nephew threatens to sue. Will is key to Meg’s dealing with Molly’s impending death. Plus, Maria and Ben want Meg to take pictures of the birth of their child. Though she and her parents move back to their house in town after Meg’s dad finishes his book, Meg does keep in touch with Will, visiting him when the blue gentian blooms. The book will make your heart both sad and happy. Reviewer: Sarah Maury Swan; Ages 8 to 12.

Children's Literature - Sarah Maury Swan