About
From Newbery Medal–winning author Paula Fox,an isolated young girl discovers surprising revelations about her grandmother-and herself. Eleven-and-a-half-year-old Elizabeth Benedict is furious when she finds out she'll be spending a month with her grandmother in Maine. She's sure she's being packed off to a remote island to live in a cottage without electricity or plumbing so that her parents can be alone with her new baby brother. While her grandmother spends her days painting, Elizabeth explores the island. She is drawn to Aaron, the strange son of their only neighbors. One day, something happens that changes everything-and reveals the real reason she was sent to Pring Island. A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, this incandescent novel takes on themes of isolation, creativity, and family as an elderly woman confronts her own mortality with acceptance and dignity.
Related Subjects
- Death, Grief, Bereavement (Social Themes)
- Social Themes (Juvenile Fiction)
- Juvenile Fiction
- Multigenerational (Family)
- Family (Juvenile Fiction)
- Friendship (Social Themes)
- Multigenerational (Family) (Family, Young Adult Fiction)
- Family (Young Adult Fiction)
- Young Adult Fiction
- Friendship (Social Themes) (Social Themes, Young Adult Fiction)
- Social Themes (Young Adult Fiction)
- Death, Grief, Bereavement (Social Themes) (Social Themes, Young Adult Fiction)
Reviews
"Another subtle and thoughtful novel from this fine author . . . Beautifully realized characters, vividly telling images, and a wise and compassionate view of the complexities of human nature."
Kirkus Reviews, pointer review
"In this wonderfully realized, sensate novel, Fox's unadorned prose is anything but austere. . . . In a forthright manner, she sets each scene and paints her thoroughly compelling, complex characters."
School Library Journal, starred review
"Western Wind, in the tradition of the best young-adult fiction, manages to capture the essence of Elizabeth's transformation from a self-absorbed adolescent to a more tolerant, loving person."
The New York Times Book Review