Readers of Kate DiCamillo and Sheila Turnage will love Moonpenny
Island, a middle grade novel of friendship and secrets by the beloved
and acclaimed Tricia Springstubb.
Moonpenny is a tiny island in a great lake. When the summer people leave
and the ferries stop running, just the tried-and-true islanders are left
behind. Flor and her best, her perfect friend, Sylvie, are the only
eleven-year-olds for miles and miles--and Flor couldn't be happier. But
come the end of summer, unthinkable things begin to happen. Sylvie is
suddenly, mysteriously, whisked away to school on the mainland. Flor's
mother leaves to take care of Flor's sick grandmother and doesn't come
back. Her big sister has a secret, and Flor fears it's a dangerous one.
Meanwhile, a geologist and his peculiar daughter arrive to excavate
prehistoric trilobites, one of the first creatures to develop sight.
Soon Flor is helping them. As her own ability to see her life on this
little lump of limestone evolves, she faces truths about those she
loves--and about herself--she never imagined.