The Lightkeeper's Daughter - Hardcover

Lawrence, Iain

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385729251 ISBN 13: 9780385729253

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2002

Synopsis

Three years have passed since Squid McCrae last saw her parents and the remote island where she grew up. She returns now at seventeen, a young woman with a daughter in tow. The visit, she knows, will be rough. Lizzie Island–paradise to some, a stifling prison to others–brings an onslaught of memories. It is the place of Squid’s idyllic childhood, where she and her brother, Alastair, blossomed into precocious adolescents. But Lizzie Island is also the place where Alastair died.

Now the past collides with the present as Squid’s homecoming unleashes bittersweet recollections, revelations, and accusations. But nothing is what it appears to be. No one possesses the complete truth, and no one is without blame.

About this title

Review

The thunder of the waves, the screams of seagulls, and the smell of torn kelp suffuse this quiet, introspective story of a young woman's return to her childhood home on an island off the west coast of Canada. The sea in all its moods makes a turbulent background for a story of four people closely tied together by their idyllic but claustrophobic life alone on Lizzie Island, and by the tangled strands of resentment, guilt, and love that bind them. Elizabeth, nicknamed Squid, has brought a load of bitter anger with her on this first visit back to Lizzie Island since she left two years ago after her daughter, Tatiana, was born. The child is the result of an encounter with a passing kayaker, who took advantage of Squid's youthful innocence. The visit is tense also for Squid's parents, Hannah and Murray, the meticulous lighthouse keeper. All three blame themselves and each other for the death, or possible suicide, of Squid's brother, Alastair, but are unable to confront their feelings.

Iain Lawrence makes a striking shift in this book from the swashbuckling action of his seagoing trilogy, The Wreckers, The Smugglers, and The Buccaneers, to a contemplative story only gradually revealed in bits and pieces through the memories of the four principals. The harsh but seductive beauty of the island and its limitation on their lives is subtly portrayed in this book that will be enjoyed by older girls who are willing to accept its thoughtful pace. (Ages 14 and older) --Patty Campbell

From the Back Cover

“A beautiful, unsettling story.”—Booklist

“A must-read for lovers of tales rich in setting, atmosphere, and human understanding.”—Kirkus Reviews, Starred

“A beautiful story of light and dark, of magic, ghosts, tempests and shipwrecks, and of sadness and letting go.”—Kirkus Reviews, Starred

“This lyrical novel is an experience not to be forgotten.”—School Library Journal, Starred

“With adult characters every bit as memorable as the teen characters, Lawrence’s novel may well attract a wide adult readership.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred

About this edition

• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0385729251
• ISBN 13: 9780385729253
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256